Toronto police give new meaning to 'point and shoot' with gun amnesty

In an effort to put a dent in Toronto's gun population, local police started a campaign Wednesday that offers gun owners digital cameras in exchange for their firearms.

The campaign, entitled "Pixels for Pistols," will reward those turning in legal or illegal firearms to the police with a Nikon camera from the Toronto-based photography chain Henry's.

"People who may have had a rifle or a handgun hanging around the house for a long period of time, and don't know what to do with it – this is a chance for them to get rid of it," Toronto police Chief Bill Blair told CBC News.

While the move isn't expected to cut crime in the city, Toronto police estimate that 30 per cent of weapons used by criminals were once legally owned. One criminologist told CBC News the amnesty may have other benefits.

"You might take guns out of places where people might hurt themselves, where children might have access to them," said Kevin Haggerty of the University of Alberta.

But a community activist in the Jane and Finch area, a Toronto neighbourhood known for gun violence, told CBC News the police are missing the big picture with the campaign.

"The real gun problem is the legal guns that are coming across the border. So they really need to put more resources to stopping the pipeline," said Mark DeZilva of Jane-Finch.com.

The program will end on Nov. 23. It is the third gun amnesty program initiated by police in the last eight years. In 2005, an amnesty netted 260 guns. When the gun registry came into effect in 2000, 1,800 firearms were submitted to police.

The program is only open to residents of Toronto. Gun owners are advised to call Toronto police at (416) 808-2222 to arrange a swap and shouldn't show up at a Henry's location with firearms.