Eight months after Los Angeles County probation officials attempted to auction off hundreds of guns they no longer needed, county supervisors have barred all their departments from ever trying that again.
The supervisors unanimously approved a policy Tuesday that would require all departments to destroy firearms they no longer need rather than profit from selling them to the public. While the policy applies to all county departments, it would likely have the largest impact on the Probation and Sheriff’s departments.
Full story: L.A. County prohibits departments from selling guns
Could there potentially be a conflict of interest when it comes to police departments selling repossessed weapons? There could be a financial incentive to seize more guns on the part of the police department, which could then turn into frequent raids or just constant attention for weapons that they can seize. I feel like it would not only put the police themselves at risk, especially in today’s climate where the question and sentiment of the 2nd Amendment is so widely debated and discussed, but it would also put civilians at risk as well.
With elevated raids and attention to guns and weapons, it could put weapon owners on standby and on guard, which could then cause tensions between gun owners and the police to rise. All of these are simply possibilities, but I feel as if they’re possibilities we should consider.