LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Lexington Police Department is joining national teams for the Right to Carry, Duty to Secure campaign. LPD and the International Associations of Chiefs of Police are working with Shaquille O'Neal to spread the word about the importance of carrying responsibly.
Lexington Police’s Sgt. Guy Miller says, "It's a message where you do have a right to carry your firearm and if you're going to exercise that right take the responsible steps to secure it safely when you're not around it."
Securing firearms safely can mean being out and securing them safely and out of sight in your car. It can mean keeping them locked up where thieves or children can't easily get to them. It can also mean making sure they're out of your car at night.
"The FBI stat is showing that most of these guns are being stolen in driveways or roadways,” says Miller.
The campaign estimates that every year around 200,000 firearms are stolen nationwide. In Lexington, from the beginning of the year through the end of July, 190 firearms were stolen, and data shows that 163 of those stolen firearms came out of a vehicle. Officers say that often, those stolen firearms go on to be a part of other violent crimes.
Sgt. Miller says, "Our detectives in our personal that investigate violent crimes and even our narcotic investigations, they're seeing stolen firearms in their investigations. And sometimes if you think about those transactions an argument occurs, right? Well, if that stolen firearm is not there, does that violent crime happen?"
Making sure that your firearm is secure can also mean talking about gun safety with your family and people around you. Lexington police want to make sure people are taking these steps to keep the community safer.
"We know that a lot of things are going on in people's lives and they have the right to carry that and protect themselves. But then they also have a duty to secure it and that's taking those extra steps,” says Miller.
For more information about the campaign or the international associations of chiefs of police you can check them out online.
