Oakland Offers $300 Gift Cards for Guns

Oakland Police Department's annual gun buyback this weekend offers gift cards of up to $300 for surrendered firearms.

Updated on Nov. 9, 2026 in Violence

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The Oakland Police Department is offering gift cards worth up to $300 for firearms surrendered at a gun buyback held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at St. Benedict's Catholic Church in East Oakland. The no-questions-asked program, known as "Guns to Gardens," will repurpose collected firearms as garden tools.

Why it matters

The buyback is part of efforts to reduce firearm violence in Oakland, where 32 homicides had been recorded through July 31. Local residents with unwanted guns in their homes have a direct, no-questions-asked option to surrender them.

The buyback runs this weekend from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 2245 82nd Ave. Last year's event collected 58 firearms, but the outcome of this year's collection is not yet known.

The players

Oakland Police Department

The municipal police agency for the city of Oakland, California, which runs the annual gun buyback and reports local crime data.

St. Benedict's Catholic Church

A Catholic parish in East Oakland at 2245 82nd Ave. that hosts the gun buyback on its grounds.

The details

Participants can surrender firearms at St. Benedict's Catholic Church in exchange for gift cards of up to $300, with no questions asked. The Oakland Police Department says the collected firearms will be repurposed as garden tools under the "Guns to Gardens" name.

This weekend (Saturday, November 2026): gun buyback at St. Benedict's Catholic Church from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Last year (2025): annual buyback collected 58 firearms, including four assault rifles.
Through July 31, 2026: Oakland recorded 32 homicides.
2022: Oakland hit a 10-year peak of 117 homicides.

Legal Context

Oakland's homicide total has fallen from its 2022 ten-year peak of 117 to 32 through July 31, an 11% drop from the same period in 2025. The annual buyback, which collected 58 firearms last year, is one of the city's ongoing efforts within this broader trend.

Residents with unwanted firearms can bring them to St. Benedict's Catholic Church this weekend between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to receive a gift card of up to $300 with no questions asked. Participants should note the buyback is limited to this single weekend window.