Michigan Priest Combatting ‘Ghost Guns’ Featured on The Daily Show

A Michigan priest working to get guns off the streets and properly destroyed recently made an appearance on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show."

Rev. Chris Yaw  of St. David's Episcopal Church in Southfield was featured on a March 7 episode.

👇WATCH THE FULL CLIP BELOW👇

Daily Show host Desi Lydic asks how a priest gets involved in gun buyback programs. Yaw responds,

“In America, it’s a lot easier to get a gun than to get rid of a gun. There is this sense that in churches we're just going to pray for this gun problem. But church people are sick of thoughts and prayers too."

According to Episcopal News Service, Yaw and his church has organized eight gun buyback and disposal events across the Detroit area in the past three years. They've been able to collect more than 650 firearms.

READ MORE: ABC's 20/20 Episode Dives Into How DNA Tech Solved a West Michigan Teen’s 1988 Murder

Get our free mobile app

St. David's first buyback event offered those turning in their guns Target gift cards. Yaw explains they had about $5,000 in gift cards that were gone in about 20 minutes.

So what happens to the guns once they're turned in?

They are handed over to the Michigan State Police and then destroyed... or so Yaw and so many others thought. MSP had been working a company out of Missouri called GunBusters. It was uncovered that while GunBusters does destroy the receivers or frames of the weapons, other parts salvaged and are resold online. These parts can then be used to build "ghost guns", or homemade firearms.

UP NEXT: Four Michigan Locations Competing for 'Best Small Town in the Midwest'

Lydic questions how this GunBusters was able to do this.

State Rep. Natalie Price explains more about the Gun Act of 1968 and how it defines firearms:  A gun is considered completely destroyed if the frame or receiver are destroyed, but other parts are still legal to sell.

👇BELOW: Is It Illegal? Answering Frequently Asked Questions About MI Laws 👇

Price says that now the state of Michigan is partnering with MSP and an in-state company that does actually pulverize the guns. It is now signed into law that guns turned in at Michigan buyback events must be completely destroyed.