Official Statement - State Police Announces New Method for Firearm Disposal

Beginning this month, the Michigan State Police will utilize a scrap metal processing facility in Jackson, Mich. for disposal of firearms pursuant to MCL 750.239 and MCL 28.434. MSP personnel will transport all firearms to the facility where they will be destroyed in their entirety using an industrial pulverizer.

In January 2024, the MSP temporarily paused disposal of firearms while it researched alternate disposal options, as the previous disposal method destroyed only the frame or receiver of the firearm. 

“This new method will improve public safety by ensuring all parts of a firearm are destroyed, never to be used again, and continue to meet the ATF’s acceptable destruction procedures, as we always have,” stated Col. James F. Grady II, director of the MSP. “I’m pleased we were able to find a cost-effective alternative method that allows for the full destruction of the firearm.”

Under the new procedure, the MSP will accrue some additional staff costs due to transport and record-keeping requirements but will not be charged for use of the pulverizer. The pulverized metal will then be melted down and recycled into flat roll steel coils.   

In 2023, the MSP disposed of 11,582 firearms.