LAKELAND, Fla. — In a new study, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) reports that 6% of Florida teens have guns — including a significant number of middle schoolers, something that has alarmed local advocacy groups.

Over the past three years, Mike Murray has spent most of his time spreading one message throughout Polk County.

“Secure your firearms. Just simple as that,” he said.

In his experience as co-chair of the League of Women Voters’ Gun Violence Prevention Action Team, Murray says he’s learned that youth typically access firearms from within their homes. So when he heard about the AAP study, which analyzed trends in handgun possession among adolescents from 2002 to 2022, he was concerned. What worries him most is how they get the guns.

“They should never get them,” Murray said. “They should never be able to have them, and that’s what concerns me more. And that’s the thing we have to do — we have to teach parents to keep them locked up.”

The Army veteran says having unsecured, easily accessible handguns can lead to even more troubling studies. He says the way to combat this is by first asking why youth feel they need a handgun.

“They may feel it’s cool. They may feel they need it because of where they are — just for self-protection,” he said.

League of Women Voters volunteer Andy Crossfield says some young people may feel like justice isn’t on their side.

“If you have a feeling that there is no justice in the world, then it falls on you to protect yourself,” Crossfield said.

In light of this, both men advise parents to talk with their children, and then take the necessary steps to keep firearms secure. Murray also says action needs to be taken at the state level.

“They’ve got to do an honest assessment of the whole thing and be transparent with it with the communities. Educate the public, and then educate the students, the kids.”

He says this is needed before another young life is reduced to a number.