Coffee with Chief targets gun safety

Maricopa Police Chief Steve Stahl said there are polarized opinions on guns.

“Some are very comfortable around guns and say ‘Don’t ever be afraid of guns because the only thing that makes a gun go off is a person,’” Stahl said. “Then there’re others who are deftly afraid of the gun. It will drop, it will go bang and might actually shoot somebody.”

The department hopes to clear up some myths about firearms during its monthly Coffee with the Chief event Saturday near the Starbucks at Bashas’ grocery store, 21044 N. John Wayne Parkway. The 8 a.m. event is open to the public.

For this month’s topic, gun safety, police will share firearm safety tips with attendees. Det. Mike Dennison, a firearms instructor for the department, will speak about the proper ways of handling a gun.

“These are just going to be tips that we can offer to you to keep your weapon safe in your home or in your vehicle, away from your children or things like that,” Stahl said.

For example, if the gun isn’t in the holster, the safest direction to point the weapon is at the ground.

“You never point the gun at anything unless you intend to shoot … whatever you’re pointing at,” he said.

The latest report from the National Safety Council showed 613 unintentional deaths in the U.S. in 2007. Sixty-five deaths were children ages 14 and younger.