Free gun locks to be distributed in Milwaukee for Suicide Prevention Month on Sept. 13

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Milwaukee County’s Department of Health and Human Services will distribute free gun locks Friday, Sept. 13 as part of Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

According to a Behavioral Health Services press release, the initiative aims to prevent firearm suicides and promote safer communities.

Gun locks will be available from noon until 2 p.m. at four locations: the Milwaukee County Mental Health Clinic and the three Behavioral Health Access Clinics located at federally qualified health centers across the city:

• Outreach Community Health Center at 210 W. Capitol Drive;
• Milwaukee Health Services at 8200 W. Silver Spring Dr;
• Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers at 1635 W. National Ave.

Officials note that firearm suicides accounted for over half of all U.S. suicide deaths in 2022, with there being a 53% increase in firearm suicides among young people ages 10-24 over the past decade.

The Milwaukee County BHS Prevention Team will manage the distribution of the gun locks.