HOUSTON -- Over the past week, there have been several incidents in Texas where children have been accidentally shot with family guns.
Keeping firearms locked up is the obvious advice heard all the time but some people believe that in an emergency, they won’t be able to get to their weapon in time.
However, employees with Houston’s Boyert Shooting Center say that thanks to technology, that’s simply not the case anymore.
“It’s like Spiderman basically, with great power comes great responsibility,” said Eric Childress, retail manager at Boyert Shooting Center.
Childress believes that gun ownership and gun safety go hand in hand.
“If you have that weapon, that’s your responsibility to make sure that it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands,” he said.
The wrong hands are often children’s. According to an investigation by USA Today, a child under 12 dies almost every week from accidental shootings in the US, usually caused by an unsecured loaded gun and a guardian’s lapse in attention.
But there is technology on the market that can help, like biotech gun safes.
“This right here is the Vaultek VT 20-I,” Childress explained, “with this one right here, it does have that fingerprint recognition.”
The safe opens with the touch of a finger, storing up to 20 fingerprints. With Bluetooth technology it will track every time it’s opened and send the information to your smartphone.
There are some safes on the market that respond to a key fob, capable of opening from across the room in an emergency.
There are also devices that lock into magazine wells so nothing can be loaded or unloaded.
“Nothing can happen," Childress said about the firearm "This is basically a blunt object right now. It’s not a firearm.”
And at the very least, most guns come with a trigger lock system, which basically acts as a padlock for a gun.
The costs for these safeguards vary but something can be found to fit most almost anyone’s price point.
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