A boy reaches into what looks like a nightstand drawer and grabs hold of a handgun.
The message beside the image — towering over streets, pedestrians and motorists — reads: “Every 30 hours, a child is killed or injured by gun violence in LA County.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control, between 2003 and 2021, accidental gun deaths of children ages 17 and under were most likely to happen in a house or apartment; 56% occurred in a child’s home. In 2022, more than 800 deaths in LA County involved a firearm and of those, 313 were due to gun suicide.
“A significant portion of the gun violence that plagues our communities – especially unintentional deaths or injuries and gun suicides – can be prevented if firearms in the home are kept locked and unloaded,” said Barbara Ferrer, director of the county department of public health in a prepared statement.
The graphic displays have been popping up on 150 billboards in mostly residential neighborhoods adjacent to the 710 and 10 freeways since early this month. The billboards are sponsored by LA Care Health Plan, Los Angeles County Department of Public Health’s Office of Violence Prevention and the Los Angeles County Medical Association (LACMA).
The billboards are the messaging portion of a two-pronged approach aimed at reducing gun violence that often results in the injury or death of children. The three groups have also begun handing out gun locks at hospitals and clinics.
Since April 2, the county departments and its medical partners have begun distributing more than 60,000 cable gun locks free of charge, no questions asked. To receive a gun lock, gun owners can visit lockedandunloaded.org and fill out a form to receive a free gun lock in the mail.
The effort sends a message to owners of guns to keep them locked and unloaded in the home. Also, the county and medical partners want people to share this information with their neighbors.
“Gun violence exacts a devastating toll on our…
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