Precision Bluing Interview with FOX 40 News
Gun Safety When There are Children in the Home
October 13, 2009 - Johnson City, NY VIEW VIDEO
Gun Safety Tips For Kids
A local man who restores guns has tips for how families who own guns can keep children safe, possibly preventing incidents like this weekend's shooting death of an eight-year-old Town of Deposit boy by his 12-year-old brother.
Mark Smith, owner of Precision Bluing in Greene, says it may sound like common sense, but parents should always keep guns and ammunition locked up separately in either a gun safe or cabinet.
He also says there's something people of all ages should be taught before learning how to fire a weapon.
"Anyone that is going to operate a firearm, the very first thing they should do is find out how to check to see if its loaded. It should always be handled as if it were loaded," said Mark Smith, Gun Bluer. Coming up on FOX 40 News at Ten, we'll have more tips on gun safety for children.
October 13, 2009 - Johnson City, NY
Gun Safety Tips
Mark Smith has been a gun bluer, restoring old firearms, for 35 years. He says there's an important step anyone who wants to use a firearm needs to be taught. "The first thing I ever do when I teach kids how to shoot is they should never even touch a firearm until they learn how to see if it's loaded," said Smith, owner of Precision Bluing in Greene. Smith says he thinks kids younger than 13 are too young to handle guns. He and his wife, Jennifer, look for maturity in customers' children when they say they want to learn how to shoot. We'll observe them with the parents and other people, and if they're not able to listen to an adult and follow instructions, then we tell them, 'you're not ready to learn how to handle a gun,'" Jennifer Smith said. Once kids have been taught the basics of how to use a gun, the Smiths say parents should take the next step and keep all firearms and ammunition under lock and key. They say there are a variety of options for gun owners to choose from. Trigger locks can be found at most sporting goods stores, and police departments often give out cable locks for free. The Delaware County Sheriff's Office says it's up to parents to take these steps, which can help prevent incidents like this weekend's shooting death of an eight-year-old boy by his 12-year-old brother. "Certainly, it's the parents' responsibility in the home to ensure that any firearms, any guns, are secured 100%, particularly when there are children in the home," said Delaware County Undersheriff Douglas Vredenburgh. Smith says locks shouldn't be a family's last safety measure -- they should also invest in a gun safe or cabinet to keep weapons out of kids' hands. ***FOX 40's Sarah Blazonis Reporting***