L.A. County offers free gun locks in an effort to decrease firearm violence

Designed for use on unloaded weapons, gun locks cover the trigger and require a key or combination to open. To that end, Los Angeles County public health officials announced that the county is offering free gun safety locks to residents. Addressing a small crowd, L.A. County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said, “In Los Angeles County, a child is killed or injured by gun violence every 30 hours.” “In 2022, more than 300 residents in L.A. County died by gun suicide, and 510 residents died after being shot by someone with a gun,” Ferrer said. Ferrer went on to say that too many families have experienced the pain of losing a child, parent or sibling because guns were “readily available in the home, loaded and unlocked.” California New initiative seeks to crack down on violent gun crime in Southern California Operation Safe Cities was born out of frustration with violent criminals carrying out brazen robberies with firearms and will focus on bringing harsher penalties against repeat offenders. To reduce the accessibility of guns at home, the county public health department’s Office of Violence Prevention is making 60,000 gun locks free to residents, no questions asked.