Atlanta City Council approves plan to give away free gun lockboxes

ATLANTA - A new plan just approved by the Atlanta City Council would give out free gun lockboxes to residents.

According to statistics from the city, there were 168 homicides in Atlanta last year. Officials want to do anything they can to lower that number. 

"I think we are preventing a person from stealing a gun and a person getting shot, murdered, robbed or scared," Councilmember Antonio Lewis said.

That's the goal behind the new legislation passed by the City Council on Tuesday through the new gun lockbox handout program.

"I want every criminal in the city of Atlanta to know that we’re giving away lockboxes for free," Lewis said.

Lewis says a lot of guns fall into the wrong hands because they're left unsecured - especially in cars.

The Atlanta Police Department reported more than 200 unsecured guns were stolen from cars in 2021 alone.

"Criminals are spending less than 20 seconds in a car, so if they have 20 seconds, they’re not trying to break into a lockbox. They see a lock box, they go to the next car, or they go home," he said.

But if a thief finds that gun, Lewis says they will us it.

"If a person steals a gun they're not taking it to the police to turn in a stolen gun," he said. "They're stealing that gun to do something else with it."

Lockboxes can also prevent guns from falling into the hands of kids who then could use them to hurt themselves or others. That was the case with 4-year-old Kendal Lewis, who police say shot herself when she found a firearm in the backseat of her mom's car while on Interstate 85.

City leaders say if these locks end up saving a single life, they'll be worth the investment.

"Even if we get an inch better in crime, we just got better," Lewis said.

At this time, there is not a clear timeline on when the city will start giving out these lockboxes.

Lewis says he wants to start by giving out 2,000. If there's a demand for more, he'll push to give away 2,000 more.