POWAY, Calif. (KGTV) -- A local business and organization are coming together to take steps toward better protecting Alzheimer patients by providing free gun locks.
Alzheimer’s San Diego and Poway Weapons and Gear have started the first of its kind program regarding what to do when it’s time to lock up your guns.
Eugenia Welch is the President of Alzheimer’s San Diego and spoke to 10News.
"As we were working further through this program, there was an incident locally, a gentleman shot his daughter because he didn’t recognize her as a daughter he thought she was an intruder. Luckily she’s fine but that could have been a really bad situation," she said.
When families are helping their loved ones who have been diagnosed, they often forget about the guns in the home and how dangerous they could be. "If someone is retired military or retired police officer, they’ve probably had guns in their home their whole life and didn’t even think about it” Welch says.
This program gives free gun locks to families. It started over the summer and so far they have given out 100 locks.
Poway Weapons and Gear has donated 500 locks and tells 10News they will continue to donate as need grows.
The program hits close to home for the business because the owner’s grandmother was also diagnosed with the disease.
With the locks on guns they become completely unusable, preventing the cylinder from going back in with the rounds to allow the gun to be fired.
While the ideal situation is for the guns to be completely removed, the organization says this is the next best option.
