To some people across various parts of this country, the thought of gifting your pre-teenage child a firearm for Christmas may seem, at the least, out-of-step with the kind of gun violence we see today. But in Louisiana - Sportsman’s Paradise – it is a rite of passage for some families, many of whom may go hunting. And that’s the idea behind the “First Gun Course” offered by the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s office.
"[Instructor] This is the safety. When you see red it’s fire. When it’s covering the red it’s on safety.” Firearm instructors went through all the safety measures for the latest First Gun Course” at the sheriff’s training academy in far south Caddo Parish.
“[Instructor] You can aim it where you’re going to be shooting at. Look through the circle. You’ll see the circle; you’ll see a post in the front.” The four-hour class is designed for kids from 8-to-12 years of age. The course gives basic instruction for those who may have never fired a gun. Sergeant Justin McDonnell is range master. “We really have it for children that might be receiving their first gun for Christmas, or something like that, to learn just basic firearms safety rules, but also for parents to, parents already know them, but to go back over them and remind them of all the firearm safety rules.”
Shantina Goines of Shreveport brought her 10-year-old son Malachi to the course. And Goines says the recent surge in gun violence in Shreveport has gotten her full attention. “This type of area, it [doesn’t] matter where you live, how safe it is. I think every child and adult needs to take a firearms class. You never know when you’ll have to protect yourself.” Malachi agrees this experience helps. “Now that I got to shoot, I’m not scared anymore.”
Sgt. McDonnell says the knowledge learned by the students can translate into safer circumstances in the home. “If mom and dad have guns somewhere in the house, so, if they come across one, they don’t just grab it. That’s the other part of what we’re teaching them is not to touch guns. If they find them then leave it alone, go find an adult and find them, leave it alone, go find an adult and tell them.”
Instructors weave safety measures into every element of training – on how to properly handle a firearm - at all times. “After you shoot, take the finger off the trigger, okay. That way, you won't negligently shoot, okay.”
McDonnell says kids are curious by nature – and often they are drawn to a gun, which they may know nothing about. “Guns are a mysterious thing to children, I think. And if we take the mystery out of it, and show them how to be safe with it, maybe take the mystery out of it and it’s not something they go seek out.”
The next “First Gun Course” will be offered on Saturday, January 13. and run from 8:00 a.m. to noon. There is no cost for the course, but pre-registration is required, and space is limited. Caddo Parish residents will be given preference – and an adult must remain with the child throughout the course. To register, you can call (318) 681-0735.
