Local journalists 'shot' in police anti-gun promotion

Volunteers from local media took part in a demonstration staged by Avon and Somerset police as part of its campaign against replica guns.

'Victims'  were placed in the shoes of the police in a simulation using real guns with blank bullets to illustrate that it only takes a fraction of a second for an armed incident on the streets to turn deadly.

Of all the incidents needing armed attendance in Avon and Somerset, 90 per cent are caused by fake guns, air weapons, ball-bearing (BB) guns or toys. And each time an armed response unit is called it costs £1,410 - the cost of 27 bobbies patrolling a neighbourhood for an hour. So local police have launched a campaign to cut down the number of fake guns being bought, sold and carried in the region. It coincides with a national amnesty this month, where people can give up their firearms without prosecution.

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