8 kids are shot every day by a misused or unlocked gun found in the home.1 With COVID-19 restrictions keeping more kids at home, and an explosion in gun sales in 2020,2 that risk may be rising.

4.6 million
children live in a home with an unlocked gun3
3 in 4
kids know where their parents keep their guns4
1 in 5
parents don’t know their kids have handled their guns4
8 kids are shot every day by a misused or unlocked gun found in the home.1 With COVID-19 restrictions keeping more kids at home, and an explosion in gun sales in 2020,2 that risk may be rising.

4.6 million
children live in a home with an unlocked gun3
3 in 4
kids know where their parents keep their guns4
1 in 5
parents don’t know their kids have handled their guns4

Prevent an unwanted unboxing




The less accessible the case or box is to children, the better. Remember the lengths you used to go to find your presents? Use that as your guide.



Ammunition should always be
kept in a completely separate location from the gun itself, and locked up as well.


Have the conversation
When encountering a gun, these 4 steps may save your child’s life:


1. Stop
Why stop? Because in the excitement of finding a gun, it’s crucial to slow down so your child can remember what to do next.
2. Don’t Touch
3. Run Away
4. Tell a Grownup

Have the conversation
When encountering a gun, these 4 steps may save your child’s life:


1. Stop
Why stop? Because in the excitement of finding a gun, it’s crucial to slow down so your child can remember what to do next.

2. Don’t Touch

3. Run Away

4. Tell a Grownup

By locking your guns and teaching your children about firearm safety, you could reduce the risk of suicide by gun or an unintended shooting by up to 32%.6

2Kate Gibson, “U.S. gun sales surge to record high in 2020,” CBS News, November 3, 2020. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gun-sales-record-high-2020/
3Deborah Azrael, Joanna Cohen, Carmel Salhi, and Matthew Miller, “Firearm storage in gun-owning households with children: results of a 2015 national survey,” Journal of Urban Health 95, no. 3 (June 2018): 295–304. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-018-0261-7
4Frances Baxley and Matthew Miller, “Parental misperceptions about children and firearms,” Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine 160, no. 5 (May 2006): 542-7. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.160.5.542
5Rich Morin, “The demographics and politics of gun-owning households,” Pew Research Center, July 15, 2014. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/07/15/the-demographics-and-politics-of-gun-owning-households/
6Michael C. Monuteaux, Deborah Azrael and Matthew Miller, “Association of Increased Safe Household Firearm Storage With Firearm Suicide and Unintentional Death Among US Youths,” JAMA Pediatrics 173, no. 7 (July 2019): 657-662. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2019.1078
8 kids are shot every day by a misused or unlocked gun found in the home.1 With COVID-19 restrictions keeping more kids at home, and an explosion in gun sales in 2020,2 that risk may be rising.

4.6 million
children live in a home with an unlocked gun3
3 in 4
kids know where their parents keep their guns4
1 in 5
parents don’t know their kids have handled their guns4

Prevent an unwanted unboxing
If you own a gun and want to truly protect your family, these steps can help you secure your firearm:

Keep it unloaded




The less accessible the case or box is to children, the better. Remember the lengths you used to go to find your presents? Use that as your guide.


Ammunition should always be kept in a completely separate location from the gun itself, and locked up as well.


Have the conversation
It’s important for children to understand what they
should do if they find a gun. Keep in mind that even
if you don’t own a gun yourself, there’s a 1 in 3
chance that the family of your child’s friend will.5
When encountering a gun, these 4 steps may save your child’s life:


1. Stop
Why stop? Because in the excitement of finding a gun, it’s crucial to slow down so your child can remember what to do next.

2. Don’t Touch

3. Run Away

4. Tell a Grownup


By locking your guns and teaching your children about firearm safety, you could reduce the risk of suicide by gun or an unintended shooting by up to 32%.6
2Kate Gibson, “U.S. gun sales surge to record high in 2020,” CBS News, November 3, 2020. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/gun-sales-record-high-2020/
3Deborah Azrael, Joanna Cohen, Carmel Salhi, and Matthew Miller, “Firearm storage in gun-owning households with children: results of a 2015 national survey,” Journal of Urban Health 95, no. 3 (June 2018): 295–304. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-018-0261-7
4Frances Baxley and Matthew Miller, “Parental misperceptions about children and firearms,” Archives of Pediatric & Adolescent Medicine 160, no. 5 (May 2006): 542-7. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.160.5.542
5Rich Morin, “The demographics and politics of gun-owning households,” Pew Research Center, July 15, 2014. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/07/15/the-demographics-and-politics-of-gun-owning-households/
6Michael C. Monuteaux, Deborah Azrael and Matthew Miller, “Association of Increased Safe Household Firearm Storage With Firearm Suicide and Unintentional Death Among US Youths,” JAMA Pediatrics 173, no. 7 (July 2019): 657-662. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapediatrics.2019.1078