Nearly one-third of kids in Colorado say they could access a loaded firearm without adult permission, according to a new study by researchers at the Colorado School of Public Health.
But as the Colorado Sun reports, just as significant is how those kids say they could obtain that firearm: While a slight majority say they could access the firearm within their own home, others said they could get a loaded gun from an extended family member, from a friend, or through purchase or theft.
“It’s not just about a parent’s decision about what they’re doing in their home or what they teach their kid about firearm safety,” said Ashley Brooks-Russell, an associate professor at the Colorado School of Public Health who worked on the study and is the director of the school’s Injury and Violence Prevention Center. “It’s about the whole community.”
Interestingly, researchers found that the demographic groups who reported the highest rates of being able to access firearms in their homes—kids who are white and kids who live in rural areas—align with the groups at highest risk of firearm-related suicide. Kids more likely to report being able to obtain a loaded firearm outside the home—those in urban areas and those who are Black, Hispanic or multiracial—are also at the highest risk of firearm-related homicide. The study’s authors say these and other findings could help with targeting effective anti-gun violence messaging.
The study was published last month in JAMA Network Open.