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Thanks to a program aimed at reducing violent crime in New York, more than 600 guns are off the streets of New York. This past Saturday, citizens were asked to bring both legal and illegal guns to various locations in Brooklyn. The New York gun buy-back program ran in conjunction with community leaders, as well as the Kings County District Attorney and New York Police Commissioner. Gun owners were issued a $200 bank card for each weapon turned in. The city allocated close to a half-million dollars for the program.

The program was administered through six locations in Brooklyn, all churches.

The program is not without controversy, however. In their book Freakonomics, authors Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner argue that although the program does reduce the total amount of guns in the city, it only compels traditionally non-violent persons to hand over their weapons.

Regardless, the number of homocides in Brooklyn is down from 111 in 2007 to 95 this year.