Full Notification

HARRIS COUNTY, TX – On Tuesday, Sheriff Ron Hickman will address the public regarding the recent accidental death of a toddler in North Harris County.

On Sunday, July 05, 2015, a three year-old boy died after preliminary information shows he may have shot himself with a gun he found at a home in the 19400 block of Puget Lane in north Harris County.

The case will be referred to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office for a Grand Jury review.

WHERE: 1200 Baker St, Houston, TX 77002
WHEN: Tuesday, July 7, 2015 - 1:00 PM

If you are going to keep a firearm in your home it should always be stored in a locked safe, gun vault, or storage case, and out of the reach of children. In addition to storing your firearm in a locked location, use gun locks for added safety.

"The Harris County Sheriff's Office supplies the community with gun locks at no charge." states Harris County Sheriff Ron Hickman. "Our duty to protect the innocent children of Harris County is shared by every responsible gun owner in the community."

Ammunition should also be stored in a locked location separate from the firearm.

Talk to your children about gun safety. Teach them the following rules:

• If you find a gun in your house, or anywhere else, STOP!
• Do not touch it or allow anyone else to.
• Leave the area where the gun is.
• Immediately tell an adult.
• Even if a gun looks like a toy, don't touch it. Some real guns look like toys.

If you choose to keep a firearm for home security, please make it so the firearm is readily available to you, yet inaccessible or inoperative to others. Consider special lockable cases that can be quickly opened only by authorized individuals.

In Texas a person commits an offense if a child under 17 gains access to a readily dischargeable firearm and the person, with criminal negligence, failed to secure it or left it in a place to which the person knew or should have known the child would gain access.

For more information about gun safety, and obtaining a no-cost gun lock visit the HCSO website: http://www.harriscountyso.org/other_public_programs.aspx