Richmond Police Dept. 200 W. Grace St. Richmond, Va 23220 Customer Service (804) 646-6842 Non-Emergency (804) 646-5100 911-Emergency E-mail Police Media Relations Project Exile    If you illegally possess a firearm in Richmond, you will be arrested, tried, convicted, and exiled to serve a lengthy prison sentence.    Federal, state, and local officials have re-launched an aggressive community awareness campaign to remind everyone—especially the younger generation—of the strong penalty imposed by Project Exile for the illegal possession of guns in this City.    Introduced in 1997, Project Exile has been a successful partnership between the Richmond Police Department, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Virginia Attorney General’s office, the Richmond Commonwealth Attorney’s office, ATF, and the Virginia State Police in cracking down on gun violence.    Among the toughest gun laws in the state, Project Exile includes mandatory sentences of at least five years for certain illegal gun possession offenses. Project Exile’s ongoing enforcement efforts have removed more than 1,800 guns from city streets.    Guns were the weapon of choice in more than 90 percent of last year’s murders. Gun seizures for this year are up 69 percent compared to last year. It means Richmond Police officers seized on average three guns a day every day in 2002 and 2003. This year that number is at four times a day.    “We know that Project Exile works because in the early years of this initiative, we would go arrest someone for dealing drugs and when asked if they had a gun, the response would be, ‘No way man, I’m not going to be exiled.’ We need to get back to that mindset,” said Colonel André Parker    As an ongoing public safety measure, Project Exile continues to produce successful court convictions that result in average federal court sentences of at least five years.    The new campaign will utilize a variety of print, broadcast, and community information channels throughout the year to promote the message—An illegal gun can get you five years in federal prison. Article Date: March 09, 2004   900 East Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219 (804)646-7000 Contact Us.   ©2000-2009 City of Richmond, Virginia. All rights reserved. Privacy, Disclaimer & Terms.