MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It’s a fear too many parents have faced. Their child gets a hold of a gun that they thought was out of reach and pulls the trigger.
The city of Memphis hopes to prevent that from happening in the future by giving away thousands of gun locks starting this weekend
Ursula Madden, with the Memphis Mayor’s Office, says last October the city held an event and gave away thousands of gun locks.
She says it was a huge success.
So now, it’s time to expand their reach.
“Gun locks are now going to be available at all community centers and at our precincts,”
Starting Memorial Day weekend, the city will give away 4,000 gun locks at police precincts and another 3,000 at all 30 community and senior citizen centers.
The city teamed up with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and Project Childsafe, a federally funded program.
Eric Woods is a father who owns a firearm.
“Giving away gun locks is definitely a step in the right direction,” Woods said. “I know parents want to do the right thing. They want to protect themselves, and protect their kids.”
Studies have shown, among large cities, Memphis ranks high for accidental child shootings.
It’s a city where many households have guns for protection, and sometimes gun locks can be expensive for low-income families.
That’s why the city wants to make it easy for parents by helping them be responsible and keep their child safe.
“We want to give them all away. We want to make sure everyone can secure their weapon in their home, and that little hands don’t get them,”
Starting this weekend, you can get a free gun lock at any community center or senior center, and also at every police precinct.