NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — It's a crime Metro Nashville Police used to deal with rarely.
"It was something that wasn't even really on the radar," Metro Nashville Police East Precinct Commander David Imhof said.
It started with more and more car break-ins.
"We're seeing so many people who are leaving their cars unlocked or leaving things obviously in the open such as purses, wallets, laptops and that nature, which made those easy targets," Imhof said.
Then, more criminals started finding guns. Metro Nashville Police said in 2018, burglars stole 686 guns from cars in Nashville and already 125 this year. Imhof said the burglars are often young people.
"We're seeing these younger folks with guns and committing crimes with those guns and we're seeing more juvenile crime, gun-related juvenile crime," Imhof said.
Criminals often grab door handles to see if they're unlocked. Then, they reach for the glove box or center console. Sometimes, they don't have to search at all.
"We've had guns taken just in plain view on a car seat and that's worth breaking the window, grabbing it and taking off," Imhof said.
Calling police when you see suspicious activity helps stop the crime, but drivers also need to stop setting themselves up to be victims.
"If people would just be more cognizant of the fact of locking and taking all of those things out of their vehicles and making sure guns are secure in the proper places...sometimes those problems go away," Imhof said.
Firearms instructors echo those sentiments.
"I hear more and more reports of that as Nashville is growing," Nashville Armory general manager Kennan Sanders said. "People are storing their guns in places in their cars and criminals are definitely getting smarter."
Under Tennessee law, anyone is allowed to keep a loaded gun in the car, but Sanders says being safe is key. His first tip: store it the right way.
"Definitely don't store it in your glove box, in your center console, underneath the seat--those are the most common places that criminals look," Sanders said.
The safest way to store a gun in a vehicle is inside a personal firearm safe. All safes typically come with a tether to secure it to a fixed object inside the vehicle. That way, a criminal not only can't open the safe, they also can't take it out of the car to try to open it later. There are models of all sizes available that use keys, codes, even your thumbprint to make sure only the owner can access it.
"I think of it as not just protecting your investment and your firearm, but also being a responsible gun owner," Sanders said.
Above all else, leaving a gun in a car overnight or an unlocked car is never a good idea.
"Owning a gun is a privilege and if you’re going to carry a gun, own a gun, store a gun in your house or your car, then you have a responsibility to secure that firearm and educate anyone who has access to it," Sanders said.
Nashville offers a variety of classes for gun owners of all skill levels to learn everything about owning a firearm, as well as a shooting range.
