Are you safer with a gun in your home?

[louis c]

I have never owned a gun or had one in my home. I feel that a gun in a home makes you less safe. If it's under lock and key and made inaccessible, the gun becomes nearly useless in the case of a break in.

However, if the gun is more accessible, the chance of it being part of an unintended catastrophe, is not one I'm willing to take.

In the article listed here, what do you think the parents of these children feel like today?


<snip>A 13-year-old girl has died after authorities say she was shot Saturday by her 9-year-old brother, local media reported. Monroe County Sheriff Cecil Cantrell said the girl would not give up a video game controller when her brother wanted it. Cantrell said she was shot in the back of the head, and that the bullet went through her brain.<snip>

Link:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2018/03/19/boy-shoots-sister-video-game/437207002/

[PJMcK]

1. Not in my house! (n/t)

[hack89]

2. I have two safes

one for the guns and one for the ammo. When they were younger the kids never had the combos. There are never loaded guns in my house.

[Maeve]

3. Research is limited

But here's one view:

Having a gun in the home is associated with an increased risk of firearm homicide and firearm suicide, regardless of storage practice, type of gun, or number of guns in the home.1 Guns kept in the home are more likely to be involved in a fatal or nonfatal unintentional shooting, criminal assault or suicide attempt than to be used to injure or kill in self-defense.2 Rather than conferring protection, guns in the home are associated with an increased risk of homicide by a family member or intimate acquaintance.3

Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that living in a home where there are guns increased risk of homicide by 40 to 170% and the risk of suicide by 90 to 460%.4

The risk of dying from an unintentional gunshot injury is 3.7 times higher for adults living in homes with guns, with handguns in the home posing a particular threat.5

On a state-wide level, states with higher rates of household firearm ownership have been shown to have significantly higher homicide victimization rates.6

More at lawcenter.giffords.org/guns-in-the-homesafe-storage-statistics/

[louis c]

4. Well, those stats verify my instincts. Thanks (NT)

[Xipe Totec]

5. In sixty years I've been three times a victim of home robbery.

Twice while the family was asleep, and once while away on vacation.

In the first two instances nobody in the house woke up while the robbery was in progress, so the fact that there were no guns in the house made no difference to the outcome.

In the third case nobody was home, we were on a long vacation. The thieves broke in, started piling all our belongings into bundles, and then broke in to my fathers liquor cabinet. An hour later they were still there, having a good time and decided to play some music on the stereo. That woke the neighbors who called the police and the thieves were arrested and hauled away. If we had owned guns, the only thing that would have happened is that the guns would have been stolen as well.

My brother who owned a money exchange had a gun for protection. He was robbed at gunpoint and while he was trying to chamber a round he was shot in the neck and nearly died.

My sister and brother and law were gun nuts. They owned and packed guns all the time. They had concealed-cary permits. Children included. One fine day not long ago my sister got depressed and put a bullet through her brains.

I've never personally owned a gun, except for a bb-gun I had when I was ten.

Given all these various situations I believe there is more of a chance to be injured or die when there's a gun around than when there's no gun around.

[Corgigal]

6. I heard on a podcast

that 75 percent of the guns used in a home are used for suicide. So, that means, it must always be locked up at all times. Humans are emotional creatures, and sometimes that would seem like a easy out.

I wouldn't have a gun in our home , if I had any child under the age of 25 in the house, and still it will be locked up. They will know where the gun is, no matter where you think you're smart enough to hide it.

My kids are now all grown. My husband is former LEO, and qualified for concealed because of his training and muscle memory. It's still locked up.

It's a big decision, and we don't take the kids out to the range to teach them how to shoot. That's a personal choice, my husband would now because they are in their 30s now, but we're not guns nuts at this house. It's an issue we have always agreed with. If one of the kids wanted to trained, for cause, we would consider it. That would be my husbands choice. After all these years, I trust his judgement.

The parents in the above story, didn't secure their weapon. Failure number 1.

[samnsara]

7. we have guns in our house...no kids..

...I live in the mtns and too many times i have had errant jeepers come knock at my front door late at night needing to use the phone because their jeep got stuck...


and we have predators...

[Farmer-Rick]

8. My father kept his hunting rifle in the coat closet

He showed all of us 6 children how to use it once we were over 10.

But he hid the ammo, if he had any at all, and he never left it loaded.

My better half's father left her his antique rifle. I don't think it can be fired and there is no ammo for it. She keeps it in the bedroom. In both cases the worst that can happen is getting hit over the head with it, a more survival injury and tough to do for a child.

Seems to me people are seriously irresponsible to allow a loaded weapon to sit around or allow ammo near the weapon. It's almost as if the parents don't realize the lethality of the weapon. They have become too casual about a deadly product. Would they leave rat poison sitting around? Would they allow poisonous snakes to roam their homes? But a weapon designed to kill people is ok to leave sit around and ready to use.

But not to worry the NRA gun manufactures got their money for the sale of the deadly product.

[imanamerican63]

10. My father did the same for our family.

But we never handled them unless we had permission too.

[Bettie]

9. We have a few black powder rifles

as we've been involved in reenactments in the past.

I'm conflicted about my middle son being involved in trap shooting, but we have two shotguns that are locked away when not at the range or on the way there or home.

I don't feel that our small collection of long guns have any impact on safety or lack thereof. They are locked up with ammunition locked in a separate location, when we even have it.

[TBA]

11. My son attempted suicide

With a gun he found in his Father’s house. He survived but not without physical damage.

I was at a party once and just after we left a very inebriated young woman walked to her truck, pulled out her handgun and shot herself in the heart. She died.

My 16 year old cousin was in his dad’s boat and while waiting for his brother to bring him a sandwich apparently “playing” put the gun to his head and pulled the trigger. He died.

I have more stories...

I’d just as soon live with a rattlesnake than a gun in my house. I keep my phone close. I’ll call 911 if I’m threatened.