Kids and Guns
Kids and Guns
If there's a gun in your house, or in a house your kids visit, they need to know what to do if they ever find one. This short video from the NRA's Eddie Eagle GunSafe program is a good place to start. It's made for little kids, and it's worth a few minutes to sit down and watch it with yours.
Four steps a kid can remember
The whole program comes down to one line: "STOP! Don't Touch. Run Away. Tell a Grown-up." According to the program's own page, it started in 1988 and got a new look in 2015, when Eddie picked up his "Wing Team." Nobody in the videos is ever shown touching a gun, and the program doesn't promote owning one. It's about preventing accidents.
Kids are curious, and telling them once isn't enough. Treat it like a fire drill. Ask them what they would do if they found a gun under a bed or in a drawer at a friend's house, and have them say the four steps back to you. Then ask again a few months later.
Locking it up is on us
A video doesn't replace locking up your guns. Your kid is not the safety. You are.
Minnesota law puts it on you too. Under Minn. Stat. § 609.666, it's a gross misdemeanor to negligently store or leave a loaded firearm where you know, or reasonably should know, a child under 18 is likely to get to it, unless you've taken reasonable action to secure it. "Loaded" includes a gun with a loaded magazine in it, even if the chamber is empty. The law doesn't apply if the child got the gun through an unlawful entry, like a break-in.
What that looks like in real life is up to you. A quick-access lockbox, a safe or a cable lock all work if you actually use them. Keep the keys and codes away from the kids. And when your carry gun comes off at night, it goes in the box, not on the nightstand.
I talk about safe storage in my Permit to Carry class too, because carrying and storing go together. Sign up for a Permit to Carry class at mnselfdefense.com. Questions? Text me at 507-533-5774 or email chris@mnselfdefense.com.
Chris Marquette, Precision Plus Firearms Training
Disclaimer
This post is general education, not legal advice. I'm a firearms instructor, not your attorney. Laws and court decisions change, and every situation is different. If you have questions about a specific situation, talk to a Minnesota attorney.
Sources
Video and program
"Learn Gun Safety with Eddie Eagle & the Wing Team," NRA, YouTube
About the Eddie Eagle GunSafe Program, NRA
Minnesota statutes
Minn. Stat. § 609.666, Negligent Storage of Firearms