Editorial: Safe storage of guns can help prevent suicide deaths

Suicide is impulsive. In a moment of crisis, time and space between you and a gun can make all the difference.

Editorial is the opinion of Gilroy Life

Every year, nearly 23,000 people in America die by gun suicide. Access to a firearm in the home raises the chances of someone taking their life more than three-fold. Removing access to these weapons provides time for the moment of intense suicidal crisis to pass.

Santa Clara County’s Behavioral Health Services Department launched Dec. 6 a community awareness program to encourage safe firearm storage to prevent suicide. Officially, it ran for seven weeks, but the goals of the endeavor should continue to lessen the number of people using guns to take their lives.

Safely storing guns can help prevent tragedies, including suicides. In the moment of a mental health crisis, more time and space between a person and a gun can make all the difference. Taking a few moments to safely store firearms can give a person acting on impulse time to change their mind and get the help they need. The primary audience is middle-aged men, who account for higher numbers of suicides by firearm in the county.

A good place to start for people who own guns is to get a free firearm safety kit available through Project Child Safe (visit www.stepoutside.org/san-jose-ca/), a program from the National Shooting Sports Foundation to promote firearm safety and education. Also, military veterans can get free gun locks by request at any Veterans Administration location. Another good resources is a webpage specifically about safe storage, suicide prevention and resources: www.BeGunSafe.org.

For those who wish to voluntarily relinquish their  firearm, the county’s Sheriff’s Office accepts firearms and ammunition at its stations in San Jose, Cupertino, and San Martin. If you feel that you or someone in your household is at risk of harming themselves or anyone else, you can turn in your guns. Visit the website How to Voluntarily Relinquish Firearms to the Sheriff’s Office or call 408-299-2311 and tell the dispatcher. In the South Valley, you can drop firearms off at the Sheriff’s South County Station located at 80 W. Highland Ave., San Martin, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

A gun violence restraining order (GVRO) can help temporarily remove guns and prevent new ones from being purchased by someone who is at risk of harming themselves or others. People concerned that someone they know is at risk can file for a GVRO. Family members, household members, some employers, colleagues, teachers, and law enforcement are eligible to file. Learn more about GVROs and how to file one at www.speakforsafety.org/.

“I don’t leave my chainsaw lying around so someone could pick it up and hurt themselves, and I wouldn’t leave my gun lying around for the same reason,” said Pete, a gun owner in Santa Clara County in a press release. “When someone has suicidal thoughts, they may be fleeting thoughts. The few moments of the additional time it takes to spin the dial on the safe could be all that is needed. Safely storing guns could save a life.”

Half of all suicides in the U.S. are by firearm. Suicide is impulsive. In a moment of crisis, time and space between you and a gun can make all the difference. Quick access to guns during tough times can lead to decisions resulting in harm or death. To prevent these, take advantage of tools you can use to practice safe storage.