The May 4 story “Sheriff hopefuls agree on gun lockers” discussed how law officials had gun lockers in their homes that they had been told were secure for storing firearms, even after the manufacturer had recalled 1,320 safes between 2003 and 2004. Because of these faulty safes, a child was killed. The child was able to open a locker because of defects in the locking mechanism and then shot himself. This is a major issue.
As American citizens, we have “the right to bear arms” or own firearms, but there is also a responsibility set on us to keep them away from children. One of these precautions is keeping the firearms in a gun locker. It is a responsibility of the company selling the lockers to ensure that the lockers do indeed lock, and children will not be able to get into them. For a company to be able to sell a gun locker that is faulty and that a child can access completely defeats the purpose of a gun locker.
Parents and companies need to double and triple check these things to ensure everyone’s safety.
Kate Rhoades
Yacolt
