NSSF Partners with Gunsite Academy, Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office and Area Law Enforcement Agencies to Launch Project ChildSafe to Promote Safe Gun Storage

July 2, 2024

PRESCOTT, Arizona — NSSF^®The Firearm Industry Trade Association today joined industry partner Gunsite Academy along with Sheriff David Rhodes of the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office and representatives from the Prescott Police Department, Prescott Valley Police Department and Chino Valley Police Department to showcase NSSF's ChildSafe Project.^® and his message to prevent unauthorized access to firearms in Greater Prescott.

NSSF has provided thousands of gun safety kits, each kit including a gun lock and a safety brochure, to the community for distribution to gun owners and their families. Local partners will use the week of Prescott Frontier Days/The World's Oldest Rodeo to distribute Project ChildSafe gun locks and firearm safety literature.

At a press conference on the steps of the Yavapai County Courthouse, NSSF Senior Director of Communications Bill Brassard stressed that “no one wants their firearm to fall into the hands of an unsupervised child, someone with suicidal thoughts or a thief who might use the firearm to commit a crime.” He added, “Hiding a gun is not safe storage. Gun owners have many storage options to choose from to prevent unwanted access, including lock boxes, home and vehicle safes and digital devices. There is a device to meet every gun owner’s storage needs.”

Brassard noted that the NSSF Firearms Storage Control Week^MTA national awareness campaign that ran from June 1-7 and will repeat from September 1-7 during National Suicide Prevention Month, amplifies the ChildSafe Project message. Gun Storage Check-Up Week reminds firearm owners to check their storage practices and do their part to help prevent accidents, suicides and thefts. “Make sure everything is secure^®” is the campaign slogan.

Sheriff Rhodes thanked NSSF for providing the Project ChildSafe gun locks, which will be available at the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office and substations. He said, “The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office is a leader in gun safety and continues to work hard to keep our communities safe. While we firmly believe that gun ownership is the right of every American, we also believe that with that right comes a responsibility. The responsibility to keep your firearm safe, preventing firearm accidents, thefts, and abuse. YCSO is proud to partner with the National Shooting Sports Foundation’s Project Childsafe program and Gunsite Academy to ensure that all gun owners have the safety and educational materials they need to keep their homes safe.”

Ken Campbell, CEO of Gunsite Academy, said, “Gunsite Academy has been at the forefront of firearm safety and training for nearly 50 years. Our founder, the late Lt. Col. Jeff Cooper, simplified and codified the rules of safety into four simple, succinct parts. These rules are now universally copied and promoted. Gunsite is proud to partner with the Yavapaii County Sheriff’s Office and the National Shooting Sports Foundation to continue to promote firearm safety and proper training.”

Brassard added that safe firearm storage plays an important role in suicide prevention. In Arizona and nationally, most firearm-related deaths are suicides. NSSF has responded by developing resources, in partnership with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, to educate gun owners and their families about the warning signs of suicide, how to contact someone who is struggling, and the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.

“The decision to take one’s life is often impulsive, and sometimes happens in 10 minutes or less,” said Brassard. “Preventing access to a firearm when someone is in crisis allows for the acute risk period to pass or for intervention to be made, which can save lives.”

ChildSafe Project Celebrates 25 Years^th year of promoting safe firearm handling and secure storage. The program began in 1999 in five pilot cities and has grown to become a community-based gun safety program across the country. Today, Project ChildSafe operates in all 50 states and five U.S. territories, has worked with more than 15,000 law enforcement partners, and has distributed more than 41 million gun safety kits, each of which includes a gun cable lock. The program helps gun owners and their families determine which security devices can best meet their safe storage needs by providing resources such as these safe storage options infographics and this video which provides advice for parents to have regular conversations with their children about gun safety.

According to 2022 National Safety Council data, preventable firearm-related deaths have declined 39.2% over the past 20 years, coinciding with the efforts of Project ChildSafe.

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About NSSF
NSSF is the trade association for the firearms industry. Its mission is to promote, protect and preserve hunting and shooting sports. Established in 1961, NSSF's membership includes thousands of firearms manufacturers, distributors, retailers, shooting ranges, sportsmen's organizations and publishers nationwide. For more information, visit nssf.org.

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NSSF Media Contact:
Bill Brassard
203-426-1320 ext. 212