Austin police say they're making the public safer with a "no questions asked" gun surrender program, but critics say it just makes it easier for criminals to dump guns they've used in crimes.
Michael Cargill at Central Texas Gun Works says he's all for safety, but this doesn't make much sense.
"But then targeting certain people and getting those certain areas to turn in their firearms; I think we're trying to disarm the public for some reason and I'm not sure why."
Austin police say they've seen a 25% increase in the number of stolen or lost guns.
"I've actually contacted them and asked them to tell me how many of those firearms they recovered are reported stolen and how many of those have been used in a crime and they can't tell me yet."
Cargill says he's also frustrated there isn't a database of serial numbers for him to check to see if a gun has been reported stolen. He says he should be able to easily check a gun's status.
"When a customer comes in here and they give us their licensed to carry handgun, I can verify if that handgun license has been suspended or revoked, but I can't verify if a gun has been reported stolen? That's ridiculous."
Critics say a gun surrender program won't affect crime because guns criminals use are often stolen from people who want to keep them, so no amount of 'unwanted' guns turned in will make a difference.