Gun Safety

To help prevent safety risks involving firearms, Champaign Police encourage open, honest dialogue with children and your family about the dangers of gun play and the importance of firearm safety.

Gun owners should always take the necessary precautions to ensure the safest environment for your family, and anyone entering your home. Avoid injuries and fatalities with proper storage and handling of firearms, and by having multiple talks with kids and adults about the potential dangers of guns, and what to do if they find one.

• Project Childsafe supplies the Police Department with gun locks to distribute free of charge to those in need. Call Us or stop by the Department for info.

• If you own a gun or have one in your home that you want to dispose, call METCAD 9-1-1’s non-emergency line 217-333-8911 to arrange to voluntarily surrender the firearm to the police department.

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Safety Tips:

• Always assume that a gun is loaded. Talk to children about the dangers of playing with a gun and how a real gun is different from what they may see in videogames.

• If there is a gun in the home, it should be stored in a locked location, unloaded, and out of the reach and sight of children and unauthorized users.

• When deciding on how to properly store your firearm, security considerations in the event of a home theft or someone who could wrongfully take possession of your firearm should also be taken into account.

• Ammunition should always be stored in a separate, locked place.

• Keep keys and combinations for gun safes hidden.

• Make sure all guns are equipped with effective, child-resistant gun locks.

• Always unload, clean and place your firearms in a secure storage location immediately after returning from a hunting trip or a day at the range.

• Never handle a gun when you are in an emotional state of anger or depression. Your judgment may be impaired.

• Never shoot a gun in celebration (i.e. Fourth of July, New Year’s Eve). Not only is this unsafe, but it is generally illegal. A bullet fired into the air will return to the ground with enough speed to cause injury or death.

• Be sure you know how your firearm operates. Read the manual for your firearm, know how to safely open and close the action of the firearm, and know how to safely remove any ammunition from the firearm and its magazine. Look into local firearm safety courses to advance safe handling.

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