State's firearm safety campaign aims to give parents, gun owners and kids peace of mind

NC S.A.F.E.'s week of action is launching this week, making stops all across the state to help law enforcement agencies, schools, pediatricians and community members learn about firearm safety.

Posted 12:16 p.m. Jun 5 — Updated 9:19 a.m. Jun 6

Chelsea Donovan

, WRAL reporter

RALEIGH, N.C. — A new campaign to protect children from rising rates of gun violence is launching this week in North Carolina.

It comes as new data shows the rate of gun deaths in kids doubled from 2019 to 2021.

NC S.A.F.E. stands for secure all firearms effectively. It’s a new effort aimed at protecting children from gun violence.

NC S.A.F.E.'s week of action is launching this week, making stops all across the state to help law enforcement agencies, schools, pediatricians and community members learn about firearm safety.

According to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, from 2019 to 2021, the rate of firearm deaths among children and teenagers in North Carolina more than doubled.

The campaign stresses the majority of the guns kids are getting are not locked up. Education and action are pointed to as preventative measures.

Governor Roy Cooper hopes the initiative will cut down the number of gun deaths among children as well as thefts where firearms get into the wrong hands. Cooper feels the issue goes beyond personal safety and is a matter of public health.

After recent spike in gun incidents in NC schools, advocates call on gun-owning parents to store guns safely

"Gunfire has now surpassed car accidents as the leading injury killer of our children," Cooper said. "Gun violence is not only a crime problem, it's a public health problem."

"If you go back and look three years ago, about three percent of juvenile crime involved a firearm," said said NC Department of Public Safety Deputy Secretary William Lassiter. "Last year, that was 13 percent of all crime with kids involved a firearm. Kids are getting way too much access to firearms."

From 2012 to 2021, there were 600 firearm-related deaths that involved children in the state. Figures like that have moved to state to distribute 25,000 gun locks to gun owners across the state as part of the campaign.

A new program called EKG, educating kids on guns, will soon launch in public schools. Another part of the campaign called calm training, which aims to help anyone living with someone in crisis or that is suicidal, teaches how to limit access to lethal means. The state is rolling out public service announcements called "It Only Takes a Moment" to lock up a gun at home in a car.

Raleigh Chief of Police Estella Patterson also spoke on Monday, adding that 179 guns have been stolen from cars so far in Raleigh in 2023. In 2022 there were 582 firearms stolen from cars. Patterson also referenced Raleigh's mass shooting in the Hedingham neighborhood last fall, allegedly committed by a juvenile with full access to guns and ammunition.

The chief shared more statistics to illustrate the problem, including that in 2022 there were 490 reported aggravated assaults in Raleigh. Of those, 101, or 21 percent, were committed by juveniles.

“Children are gaining access to firearms in their homes, and gun theft — especially from cars — is on the rise throughout North Carolina,” said Lassiter. “Today, more than 20 percent of youth car break-ins involve guns. That’s double what we’ve seen in recent years. We all have to work together to stop guns from getting into the wrong hands.”

On Tuesday, the Durham District Attorney's Office and Durham County Public Health Department will be outside the Durham County courthouse from 9 a.m. to noon distributing free gun locks and gun safety information.

The campaign is also giving away gun safes and arming communities across the state with tool kits so neighborhoods or even city councils can present information to neighbors.

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