INDEPENDENCE, Mo. – The message to secure and lock weapons in your home, is once again at the forefront after a toddler died from being shot.
But Show-Me-Shooters firearms instructor Don Pind said that message isn’t getting through to some families.
You can go to almost any gun shop and find a handful of safety devices to keep your weapon secure.
Only there is a big problem according to Pind.
“Every manufacturer that sells guns today, sends you a lock with a gun and instructions on how to use it and people just don’t use them,” Pind said.
Independence police are trying to figure out if that had anything to do with the death of a 3-year-old boy at a home on E. 20th Street near S. Norwood on Saturday.
Police said no arrests have been made in the incident involving the 3-year-old.
The boy’s mother tells FOX 4 that she turned around for a moment, and then it was too late.
“I can’t imagine how a parent would feel having their own child killed with something that they could’ve unloaded or they could’ve put in a $2 sock that wrapped up and locked,” Pind said.
Pind said the problem is lack of education and it starts when the customers walk in the door.
“We have a lot of people who buy weapons, not only here but a lot of places, and they walk in and, ‘How do I load this?’ It’s almost like buying a car and asking two weeks later, ‘Where’s the gas tank?'” Pind said.
Pind said it’s affordable to buy something to secure your gun. It could cost you as little as $15 in some cases.
He also warns, don’t just tell kids to stay away from the gun.
“You tell a kid not to do something, it’s usually the first thing they want to try,” Pind said.
Retired FBI agent Jeff Lanza adds, once you educate yourself, educate your kids.
“When a kid gets to an appropriate age, where they are mature enough to handle the understanding of a weapon, then you talk to them about it and you tell them how dangerous it is,” Lanza said.
The ultimate price to be paid if you don’t secure and lock, is something you can never get back.
“Worry about your valuables later so to speak, but you’ve got to keep your kids safe first no matter what you do,” Pind said.
Pind also said every shop gives lectures or offers training on safety that people should take advantage of.
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