Tacoma, Washington is working on a new program to provide a local drop box for residents to dump their unwanted firearms.

The goal is providing anonymity to anyone who wants to discard a firearm, and while Tacoma residents can already turn in guns to local law enforcement, this method alleviates the need for human interaction.

A drop box for guns. Bad idea? (Photo: Controversial Times)

“It takes out the up-front interaction with law enforcement,” said Melissa Cordeiro, gang reduction project coordinator for Tacoma. “They would just have to drop the gun off and later law enforcement would swing by and pick it up out of the drop box.”

It’s kind of like the olden days of dropping off a movie at Blockbuster. But having so many firearms in a single, non-guarded place leaves many concerned about safety.

“It’s definitely something that is controlled access and one way,” said Cordeiro. “You can put something in, but you can’t take something out.”

If the initiative is successful, Tacoma will be setting a precedence, but first they have to figure out exactly how it would work.

“We want to make sure that it is in a safe enough location but also that police are involved,” said Cordeiro. “We don’t want to make this a target location for rival gang members or for somebody trying to steal a weapon off the street.”

(This article was a submission from freelance writer Brent Rogers)