1,000 Free Gun Safety Locks Handed Out In Philly

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Sheriff's deputies fanned out across five neighborhoods in Philadelphia to hand out 1,000 free gun safety locks, while dispensing some advice on keeping children away from them.

At the corner of 52nd and Market Streets one passerby, Symir, repeated the words of Philadelphia Sheriff Jewell Williams, "If you have a gun, you need a lock."

"People are leaving their guns in the houses and kids find them. They're not locked up, and kids get shot," said Symir.

He heard about the three-year-old girl down the street who recently shot herself after finding a loaded, unlocked gun belonging to her father.

"Yeah man, if they were locked up, the little girl couldn't have shot herself. Facts, facts, they need to first speak to the child and let them know don't touch it, and why they shouldn't touch it," Symir said.

Deputy Sheriff Derrick Murphy says their aim is to help adults secure and safely store their firearms.

"We give them a little class on how to use it, and secure their weapon," said Murphy.

The sheriff's department estimates one in three handguns are kept loaded and unlocked in homes, and most kids know where their parents keep guns.