The Danger of Unsecured Firearms

A recent article sheds light on the tragic story of a four-year-old Maryland boy who fatally shot himself after discovering a loaded firearm in the home. While in Maryland, it is technically a crime to store or leave a loaded firearm in a location where an unsupervised child can gain access to it, it is virtually unenforceable. Nonetheless, for parents who have lost a child in this way, a $1000 fine and misdemeanor charge is essentially irrelevant.

It seems that the solution to preventing personal injury with firearms lies in gun safety training, proper gun storage, and potentially, smart gun technology. For the latter, a significant amount of backlash has been noted in response to state lawmakers proposing smart gun legislation. Some of these reasons include it being a relatively new technological innovation still undergoing testing. And while some Los Angeles personal injury attorneys believe that smart gun technology will prevent accidental firings, others are cautious; holding the belief that such technology will impede on citizens' right to bear arms.

Only time will tell which methods are most successful at preventing accidental injury. But unless some measures are taken, such tragedies will continue to occur. Nonetheless, although personal injury lawyers are well acquainted with these types of cases, it doesn't make them any less devastating for the families impacted.