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The Department of Veterans Affairs recently held a Gun Safety Matters Challenge to explore new ways of securing firearms and reducing the number of veteran suicides. Of the 20 veterans who die each day by suicide, over 60 percent use a firearm. The goal of securing firearms is to build in a break between the temporary impulse and the access to a gun.
The device, per instructions for the Challenge, should allow firearms storage with voluntary prevention control, either by the veteran or a family member or friend. The device should be inexpensive, suitable for use in a home, and easy to implement. It also couldn’t impede access to the weapon should it be needed for emergencies or recreational shooting.
The challenge winner is a device that requires two people present to gain access to the firearm. It’s called the DuoBox. It was developed by a team of MIT grad students who’d also been in the Navy. The device physically requires two people to open, but also has a 30-minute delay feature that can be used by one person. It will be field tested late this year after they secure prototype funding. Read about it here: www.jamesdysonaward.org/2018/project/duobox
Second place went to a holster safe that requires fingerprint authentication. It’s called the VARA Firearm Security Response. The VARA corporation is currently seeking funding.
Third place went to a phone app called Sentinel. With the app, veterans can call a friend and use Bluetooth to unlock the firearm. It also has a time-lock feature.
If you’re a veteran who’s having suicidal thoughts, pick up the phone. Call the Veterans Crisis Line 24/7 at 1-800-273-8255 and press 1. Or you can talk online at VeteransCrisisLine.net/Chat, or send a text to 838255.
(c) 2018 King Features Synd. Inc.
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