The Albany County Sheriff’s Office is continuing its mission to remove illegal guns from the streets, with a recent gun buyback event yielding significant results. Sheriff Craig Apple is leading the initiative, traveling around the county with a mobile command center to host these events as part of ongoing efforts to address gun violence.
Sheriff Apple acknowledged the mixed feelings surrounding gun buybacks, stating, “I myself struggle with gun buyback. Very rarely do I get a gun that was used in a crime, and we have recovered a couple of stolen guns over the years, but not in big numbers. But again, the part that makes me keep doing this is the issue of removing the opportunity for somebody to get into a house and take a gun that’s lying around.”
The event is part of the recently announced Peace Initiative, in partnership with the county executive, legislature, district attorney, and a donation from the Morrell family to help collect guns. Sheriff Apple noted, “Yes, some of them are old and antiquated, but there’s a lot of powerful 9 millimeters and 40 millimeters in there as well, so it seems to be a success.”…