Lt. Governor Carney welcomes Project ChildSafe gun lock program back to Delaware
Wilmington – Lt. Governor John C. Carney, Jr. joined with law enforcement officials and elementary school students today to announce the return of Project ChildSafe to the First State.
Carney and Project ChildSafe spokesperson Dee Dee Dockins announced the distribution of 33,300 locks to law enforcement agencies across the state at Lewis Elementary School in the Red Clay School District. Wilmington Police Chief Michael Szczerba, Wilmington Director of Public Safety James Mosley and Lt. Col. Thomas MacLeish of the Delaware State Police and 3rd-, 4th-, and 5th-graders from Lewis launched the latest effort of the gun lock program. Five Project ChildSafe trucks are distributing the locks throughout Delaware today and tomorrow.
“Project ChildSafe is about keeping our children safe,” said Carney. “Every time the Project ChildSafe vans are here we get a great response from people across Delaware and we take another step toward improving the safety of our kids.”
Project ChildSafe is a nationwide program whose purpose is to promote safe firearms handling and storage practices among all firearms owners through the distribution of key safety education messages and free gun locking devices.
“It’s a simple, voluntary program that has been endorsed in Delaware by groups as diverse as the Million Moms March and the National Rifle Association,” Carney said. “If someone wants a free gun lock, all they have to do is contact one of the participating departments and get a lock.”
Project ChildSafe is an expansion of the Project HomeSafe program developed by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) and is supported by a U.S. Department of Justice grant. Formed in 1961, NSSF manages a variety of outreach programs with a special emphasis on efforts to promote firearm safety education to all gun owners.
Police departments across Delaware have participated in the program since it first arrived in Delaware about two years ago. To date, more than 40,000 free cable locks have been distributed throughout the state.
“Any time we can encourage people to secure a weapon in their house we do it,” Wilmington Police Chief Michael Szczerba said. “We’re glad we can help get these locks into the hands of those people who own firearms and keep them at home.”
Schools have also been enthusiastic about the program and its focus on keeping children safe. The program’s announcement in Delaware two years ago included the participation of students from Warner Elementary in the Red Clay School District and students from Fairview Elementary in the Capital School District.
“We are concerned about the safety of our children and are always looking to provide any way we can make that happen,” said Lewis Elementary Principal Nancy Weaver.
A list of participating departments is attached. Those interested in getting a free gun lock should call one of these departments.
To find out more about Project ChildSafe, visit the web at www.projectchildsafe.org
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