Armed Security – Securing Your Guns

by Drew Beatty

Your firearms can’t be operated safely if they fall in to the wrong hands, so gun owners need to have a strategy for keeping their arms secure.

I remember driving through a neighborhood one day and seeing a house with the garage door wide open and a large gun safe in plain view. Another time I saw a two men get out of a car in front of a house and safety check their firearms in the street next to their vehicle. They were clearly returning from a trip to the range.

I’m a law-abiding citizen, and I’m not a threat in either of these situations. But let’s look at these two situations through different eyes.

Let’s say I’m a career burglar. I’ve been in and out of jail most of my life. I’m driving through neighborhoods looking for opportunity, for soft and profitable burglary targets. I see a garage door open and a large gun safe clearly displayed. I make a note to keep checking back. If they have a safe, they likely have guns stashed in the house, or other valuable items I’d be interested in.

Or, let’s say I’m a drug addict. I have no residence, but drift from house to house and crash wherever I can. I’m currently staying on a friend’s couch. Across the street, I see two guys clearing pistols out in the open. Pistols have both monetary and functional value to a drug addict. Since I have an addict’s mindset, this interests me, and I begin to look at the neighbors and their home in a new light.

Consider this scenario: Your daughter goes to school and talks to her friend about how many pistols you have. Her friend then goes home and talks about it to her father. No big deal, but her older brother has overheard the conversation, and he’s in a gang. He would like to “up his cred” with his fellow gangsters, and he begins asking his sister where you live. See the problem?

Safety and security must matter to gun owners. Part of this responsibility is keeping information about firearms ownership close to the vest. When going to the range, be very careful to carry guns between the house and the vehicle as stealthily as possible. Don’t talk about what you have and where you store your guns to just anybody. Instruct your family to do the same.

Years ago I had guns, but didn’t yet have a safe and was changing residences. I only moved my guns under cover of darkness, so there was less chance of being seen carrying multiple firearms into the house. (I actually had a friend who moved several firearms into a new residence and, when he came back on his second trip, they were gone).

Keep firearms security foremost in mind. It’s neither paranoid nor overly cautious. It is what responsible firearms owners are obligated to do. It only takes a few seconds, and will save a lot of aggravation and misery.

Drew Beatty is a 50 year old husband and father, and a lifetime resident of the great state of Colorado. He is a long-time firearms enthusiast as well as a strong advocate for The Second Amendment.