Giving Up Your Guns

How to Turn in Firearms for Destruction

If you have a firearm you would like to be rid of, there are a number of places around the state that will take and destroy them.   

One of the places is Raw Tools, which will turn the guns into garden tools. 

Colorado Ceasefire reached out to a couple dozen police and sheriff departments across the state to determine where relinquishment-for-destruction programs existed. We found more than a dozen law enforcement departments accepting firearms for destruction.   We recommend relinquishing to law enforcement and not to private parties, as the latter may be complicated by the requirement for a background check on the receiving party.

How to Start the Relinquishment Process

The process of relinquishment to a law enforcement organization is not universally the same, but the following are the most common procedures to follow.

• Call the law enforcement department to confirm they will receive the weapon;
• Make an appointment so that an officer familiar with the relinquishment process meets you and informs you of any special requirements ahead of time (such as the location of the transfer or if they understandably would rather you not carry a firearm into the building unannounced);
• Transport the weapon unloaded, perhaps in a bag or gun case; in some cases the firearm transfer would take place in the parking lot of the facility to prevent alarming the staff when an armed individual enters;
• The law enforcement office will likely make a report of some sort to document the firearm destruction and perhaps the reason it was turned in;
• The firearm serial number will normally be checked against a database to determine if it has been stolen or otherwise associated with a crime.

Relinquishment Programs