A new initiative in Tucson, Arizona may literally provide shot guns, for free, to certain residents in high-crime areas of the city.
Shawn McClusky, a former Tucson mayoral candidate, has proposed a privately-funded program to distribute free shotguns to residents who live in dangerous areas of the city, including Midvale Park, Pueblo Gardens and another “yet-to-be determined midtown neighborhood,” according to the Arizona Daily Star. He said his primary motive for the program is to combat the issue that police officers have trouble arming themselves due to monetary restraints.
McClusky said the gun cost per person would be from $350 to $400, including $205 for each shotgun, plus one box of ammunition, background checks and training.
“We need to take back our city, and it needs to come back to the citizens and not the criminals,” he said. “Right now, the criminal element is winning.”
McClusky heard of a similar program, the Armed Citizen Project, in Houston, which spurred his initiative.
Donors have given $12,000 to the program thus far. If McClusky and his benefactors raise enough money to substantiate this project, then they could be handing out guns as soon as 60 days from now.
Some City Council members expressed concern about the idea, especially Councilman Steve Kozachik who called the initiative “idiocy.”
“To suggest that giving away … loaded shotguns in high-crime areas will make anybody safer is pure idiocy,” Kozachik said. “Saying that they’ll do background checks ignores the well-known fact that the NICS (National Instant Criminal Background Check System) records are so poorly maintained that they might as well join the gun sellers who don’t do any background checks at gun shows.”
However, McClusky told the Arizona Daily Star, “Saying guns are responsible for killing people is like saying spoons are responsible for making people fat. If someone wants to bring me the publicity for free and sue me, bring it on.”
In the past, Kozachik has “supported gun buy-back program and proposed a city ordinance to require gun owners to promptly report lost or missing guns,” according to The Daily Caller.
Councilwoman Regina Romero is not thrilled about the program either, claiming that McClusky is targeting and incorrectly identifying high-crime areas. Romero identified the Midvale Park as a “safe, beautiful neighborhood” where residents “don’t need a gun to survive.”
“McClusky is not only out of touch with Midvale, but he is reckless in promoting such a ridiculous idea,” Romero said. “If he wants to hand out guns to people, why doesn’t he hand them out around his neighborhood?”
McClusky said that residents living in those identified areas would not be required to participate in the program.
In addition to Houston and possibly Tucson, towns in Idaho, Pennsylvania, Utah and Virginia have passed similar regulations that strongly recommend gun ownership.
McClusky did not lose the 2011 mayoral race, but he was forced to bow out due to eligibility circumstances.
