Why do people keep assuming that Miss Lanza did not have a gun safe?

I have seen more than one post on this forum talk about how she should have had the guns locked up in a safe to prevent this tragedy. So I finally decided to start this thread.

The police have made no statement one way or the other as to her keeping them in a safe or not. The only half hearted reference is where one of her relatives/friends says that she was meticulous and always put them up when she was finished for the day. That would lend credence to the idea she had them in a safe.

Here is the key point in this thread. Just because you have them in a safe, does not mean that the other people in your house can not get to them. He had unlimited time to mess with the safe while she was asleep every night. There is safe cracking information available on line, and in books. Given enough time, he could have worked out the combination. He could also dig through the paperwork in the house and find the information that came with the safe to find the combination.

Safes are only good against people that have limited time, or limited interest. A person that has limitless time, and limitless drive will get in. There is no IFS ANDS OR BUTS! They will get in.

If she did have them in a safe, he most likely cracked the combination and made note of it for later. When the right time came, and she when to sleep on that day, he opened up the safe, pulled out the equipment, shot her, armed up and went to do what he wanted to do.

The only way that could have been prevented is if she had an electronic safe that would keep record of the number of incorrect combination attempts. After a set number of wrong attempts, it would lock it’s self out until a master reset code was entered. Only then, would she have been alerted to the fact that he had been trying to gain entry into the safe.

So, remember, safes are for keeping people outside of your family from gaining access, they will not keep a family member that truly wants access from getting it.

Even if she did who is to say people wouldn't know where the key is, gun safes are usually for keeping strangers out not family if you believe the story they are telling..

Maybe it was in the safe, who knows, quite frankly i don't care. Reason being is SHE taught HIM how to shoot, meaning she probably gave him the combination in trust that he would abide by the general 3 rules of guns.

Originally posted by dc4lifeskater
Even if she did who is to say people wouldn't know where the key is, gun safes are usually for keeping strangers out not family if you believe the story they are telling..

Yes, but if the story the media is telling is to be believed then the mother had reason to fear her son.

Of course the mother could possibly have been in denial about her son's sanity or lack thereof. Most mothers do tend to err on the side of support for their children.

Originally posted by scottromansky
Maybe it was in the safe, who knows, quite frankly i don't care. Reason being is SHE taught HIM how to shoot, meaning she probably gave him the combination in trust that he would abide by the general 3 rules of guns.

Yes, and RESPONSIBLE GUN OWNERS do teach their children how to shoot, safety, and the right way to use a gun.

I think we need to stop blaming the mother here.

To be a responsible gun owner it means also to teach the people around you about the guns, the safety, the use, etc. A gun safe is to protect UNeducated people from gaining access to them, also babies and younger people. But anyone over the age of 18 in the house in my opinion one doesnt need a safe because the upbringing has taught safety and responsibility, therefore the mother could just leave them lying around unlocked while she was home. Not her fault at all.