Additional Thoughts On The Responsibility Of Safeguarding Firearms From Small Children
Detroit Kids Playing With Guns Feedback
I have received some feedback from a few people on the post I wrote a week ago that referenced the Detroit case wherein one four year-old allegedly killed another four year-old.
A few folks wanted to know my thoughts about the gun's presence in the home of alleged felons - the grandparents. My response is that if the grandparents are felons then there should not have been a gun in the house from a legal viewpoint. I concede that. I agree.
Some people think that if the firearm was not in the home then the child would probably still be alive today. I concede that point as well however this tragic act could have happened to anybody who was not responsible with the firearms in their home while children were present - felony convictions or not.
Personally, I am not going to pretend that some people with felony convictions do not have firearms in their homes, especially in Detroit. However, by the same token, I am not "throwing shade" on all people with felony convictions either. Many of them are actually decent and hard-working people who had an error in judgement and did something illegal and foolish at an earlier point in their life. Until the law changes, felons can't legally own, possess, or carry firearms. The law is the law.
However, for me, that is a side point. Whereas I can't condone the grandparents for having a firearm in the home if they are indeed felons, they STILL also had a moral responsibility to keep the gun from being accessible by the kids.
Hopefully, this will serve as a wake-up call to others to receive fundamental firearm safety training, which you do not need to have a firearm in the home. And before you ask, No, that training should not be mandatory. A lack of care and common sense is the principal issue in this tragedy. Now the state must decide if their lack of care merits being punished above and beyond losing a grandchild.
I have received some feedback from a few people on the post I wrote a week ago that referenced the Detroit case wherein one four year-old allegedly killed another four year-old.
A few folks wanted to know my thoughts about the gun's presence in the home of alleged felons - the grandparents. My response is that if the grandparents are felons then there should not have been a gun in the house from a legal viewpoint. I concede that. I agree.
Some people think that if the firearm was not in the home then the child would probably still be alive today. I concede that point as well however this tragic act could have happened to anybody who was not responsible with the firearms in their home while children were present - felony convictions or not.
Personally, I am not going to pretend that some people with felony convictions do not have firearms in their homes, especially in Detroit. However, by the same token, I am not "throwing shade" on all people with felony convictions either. Many of them are actually decent and hard-working people who had an error in judgement and did something illegal and foolish at an earlier point in their life. Until the law changes, felons can't legally own, possess, or carry firearms. The law is the law.
However, for me, that is a side point. Whereas I can't condone the grandparents for having a firearm in the home if they are indeed felons, they STILL also had a moral responsibility to keep the gun from being accessible by the kids.
Hopefully, this will serve as a wake-up call to others to receive fundamental firearm safety training, which you do not need to have a firearm in the home. And before you ask, No, that training should not be mandatory. A lack of care and common sense is the principal issue in this tragedy. Now the state must decide if their lack of care merits being punished above and beyond losing a grandchild.
About The Author
Rick Ector is a National Rifle Association credentialed Firearms Trainer, who provides Michigan CCW Class training in Detroit for students at his firearms school - Rick's Firearm Academy of Detroit. Ector is a recognized expert in firearm safety and has been featured extensively in the national and local media: Associated Press, UPI, NRAnews, Guns Digest, Tactical-Life, The Truth About Guns, The Politics Daily, Fox News Detroit, The Detroit News, The Detroit Examiner, WJLB, WGPR, and the UrbanShooterPodcast.
For more info about free shooting lessons for women and Michigan CCW Classes, please contact:
Rick's Firearm Academy of Detroit
Web: http://www.detroitccw.com.
Email: info@detroitccw.com
Phone: 313.733.74
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I do most of my blogging and article writing in coffee shops because there are too many distractions at home.
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