Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Resident urges Wilkes-Barre to consider gun buyback; council and mayor suggest further discussion
Summary
A resident urged the council to pursue a gun-buyback program to reduce firearms on city streets; council members suggested holding a public hearing and consulting police but did not adopt a program at the Sept. 25 meeting.
Resident Sam Troy urged Wilkes-Barre City Council on Sept. 25 to consider a gun-buyback program as a local measure to reduce firearm circulation, citing recent violent incidents and urging a public hearing on the proposal.
Troy said he had proposed a buyback previously and pressed council members, specifically asking Councilman Thomas Barrett — identified by Troy as a former police chief — for his view. “I would like to know individually what your thoughts are… I would like to know, Tony, if you could,” Troy said, and urged the council to list objections and hold public discussions. Troy also referenced a homicide on Hazel Street and broader concerns about gun-related violence.
Council members and the mayor did not adopt any policy or program at the Sept. 25 meeting. Council members suggested talking with the police chief and holding a public hearing if the proposal advanced. Mayor George Brown and other members said they would consider further discussion; no staff direction, funding proposal or timeline for a hearing was recorded in the meeting minutes.
The transcript records the request and the council’s willingness to discuss the topic further, but it does not include police department analysis, budget estimates, or proposed program details that would be required to implement a buyback. No vote or formal referral was recorded at the Sept. 25 meeting.
