for some reason i suspect that the LA county cops are somehow violating federal law by having the program where they give away gift certificates for illegal guns. also the program appears racist - compton is a very, very poor black neighborhood. Original Article Compton residents trade guns for gift certificates Associated Press Dec. 25, 2005 12:00 AM COMPTON, Calif. - "Big Daddy" Willis came to Compton to turn an illegal homemade pistol into Christmas dinner. Charlene Watt planned to turn three shotguns into a plasma TV. The two were among dozens of residents who converged on a shopping center parking lot Saturday to anonymously swap firearms for gift certificates as part of a program aimed at reducing violence. Each was rewarded with a $100 gift card for Circuit City or the Ralphs supermarket chain. In a line that snaked across a parking lot, participants from across Los Angeles County carried guns in cardboard boxes, plastic grocery bags and fancy leather cases. "Hopefully and prayerfully this will cut down on the shootings," said Compton resident Ruther Daniels, 44, who turned in a handgun. Authorities created the program after a sharp spike in Compton's crime rate this year. Sixty-eight homicides have been recorded so far in 2005, up from 39 in 2004, according to sheriff's Capt. Eric Hamilton. Over three Saturdays, sheriff's deputies amassed more than 250 firearms, including 185 handguns, 48 high-powered rifles, 15 sawed-off shotguns and a Tec-9 semiautomatic machine gun pistol.