Sarasota police program aims to keep guns from criminals

SARASOTA (FOX 13) - A new program in Sarasota asks residents to consider turning over their firearms in an effort to keep them from getting into the wrong hands.

It all started after one man decided he no longer needed his military-grade rifle - so he donated it to the Sarasota Police Department's SWAT Team. 

"It's one simple act by one really thoughtful citizen," City Manager Tom Barwin said. 

That citizen, Philip Carey didn't want his gun to get into the wrong hands. 

"He had no interest in using it anymore and thought, 'Only probably bad things could happen with an accident or if it got stolen,'" said Barwin. 

When Barwin heard about Carey's donation, it gave him the idea for Done With the Gun - the new program that will hopefully keep guns out of the hands of criminals.

Through the program, anyone in Sarasota can call and the gun will be picked up. It will then be melted down.

"In my experience, when one person has done something or is thinking something, probably another 100 are having similar thoughts," said Barwin, who is also a former police officer.

He and his family know the dangers of firearms when they fall into the wrong hands. 

Barwin's wife lost her brother to a stray bullet. The 11-year-old was taking out the trash when he was accidentally shot by a nearby child playing with an unsecured firearm.

"He was struck by a bullet dead in the heart and it killed him right there," Barwin said. 

Barwin knows his Done With the Gun program is not the ultimate solution to gun violence, but he said it's one more step in the right direction. 

"These are the kind of tragic losses that happen far too often across the country. They not only take lives but affect families tremendously deeply for the rest of their lives," he said. 

Anyone who has a firearm they wish to dispose of may call Sarasota Police Chief Bernadette DiPino's office at 941-954-7001.