NORTHERN CALIFORNIA – Several Bay Area counties are offering residents the opportunity to take part in a gun buyback program.

Residents of Marin, San Francisco, Contra Costa and Sonoma counties can be compensated for the surrender of firearms Jan. 15 and Jan. 21.

In addressing school officials and law enforcement personnel in the immediate aftermath of the Sandy Hook tragedy, Marin County District Attorney Ed Berberian said his office would assist in organizing a local community-based program to do something more than just comment on the horror of the incident.

“Sometimes we need to come together taking one small step that empowers the average individual with the ability to do something,” Berberian said. “I personally believe we are a society with too many guns simply sitting in garages, closets, drawers and who knows where else. Our community has seen these weapons appear in our neighborhoods and streets. Let’s take a step to reduce the total number of these weapons. Let’s have a day where we go to our local police agencies across the county and turn in these guns.”

Jan. 15 was selected as the primary date as that is the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who died in act of senseless gun violence. Berberian’s office said the act of surrendering firearms would be consistent with Dr. King’s teachings and be a galvanizing force for broad based community action.

Endorsing the program and joining in this effort are all of Marin’s police jurisdictions, the Marin County sheriff, all five members of the county’s Board of Supervisors, Marin County’s superintendent of schools, local mayors and city/town council members and California’s Attorney General.

The program is built on a “no questions asked” approach with the emphasis on reducing the number of firearms readily accessible at times when individuals (adults and/or juveniles) may not be competent to either handle or decide the need for their use.

Individuals surrendering operable semi-automatic handguns and/or semi-automatic long guns will receive $200 for each firearm. Any individual surrendering any other category of an operable firearm will receive $100 for each firearm.

Documentation showing the person surrendering the firearm is a resident of Marin, San Francisco, Contra Costa or Sonoma County will be required.

This is a “no questions asked” program; therefore, no police investigative report will be opened or generated.

The five firearm surrender locations on Jan. 15 will be: Novato Police Department, 909 Machin Ave.;  San Rafael Police Department, 1400 Fifth Ave.; Larkspur police facility of the Central Marin Police Authority, 250 Doherty Drive; St. Andrew’s Church, 101 Donahue, Marin City’ Pt. Reyes Substation of the Marin County Sheriff’s Office, 101 4th Street, Pt. Reyes. The hours of operation will be from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

No ammunition should be in any of these firearms when they are brought to the surrender locations. All funding for the program has been generated locally. The county has committed $10,000, the Marin Community Foundation from two of its administered trusts have contributed an additional $20,000 with the general community mailing individual contributions to the district attorney that have added to date an additional $10,000 to support this effort.

A second surrender date has been scheduled for Jan. 21 at the San Rafael Police Department and the Mill Valley Police Department from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. The San Rafael Police Department and the Marin County Sheriff’s Office will be jointly operating this location. The Mill Valley Police Department will be the second surrender location and will also be open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.