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May 13, 2025
National Police Week – a Time to Reflect and Support
“Back the blue.” It’s a sentiment that most of us espouse on a daily basis, but one which should be at the forefront of our minds this week especially as we celebrate the 63rd anniversary of National Police Week.
A Longstanding and Worthy Tradition
Established by President John F. Kennedy in 1962, National Police Week is a time to remember and recognize the service of our nation’s law enforcement officers, especially those who have fallen in the line of duty protecting their fellow citizens. The week is full of events which pay tribute to our nation’s law enforcement, culminating in the Annual National Peace Officers’ Memorial Service, held on May 15th on the West Lawn of the United States Capitol.
If you are lucky enough to be in D.C. this week, I encourage you to check out one of these events and show your support. I also highly commend a visit to the National Law Enforcement Officer’s Memorial, whenever you next find yourself in our nation’s capital, which commemorates those officers who have fallen in the line of duty. As with many of the other national memorials and monuments that dot the D.C. landscape, the National Law Enforcement Officer’s Memorial is truly a moving tribute to each of these heroes’ sacrifices.
Support Beyond Words
While we reflect on the sacrifice and service of our nation’s law enforcement, this is also the perfect time to highlight the concrete ways we, as firearm owners and an industry, can “back the blue” and support law enforcement’s mission to protect and serve.
NSSF is proud to partner with law enforcement on many programs that promote Real Solutions. Safer Communities.® for firearms and community safety, and which provide meaningful resources and support to law enforcement in combatting crime and enhancing public safety.
Preventing Unauthorized Access
As first responders, our local law enforcement are often acutely exposed to the tragic results that can occur when a firearm is stolen or accessed by an unauthorized person, including a child. As responsible firearm owners, each of us can and should play a part in preventing such incidents by ensuring our firearms are properly stored when not in use. Project ChildSafe®, NSSF’s free gun lock distribution program, is a perfect example of how our industry actively partners with law enforcement to promote firearm safety in our communities.
For over 25 years, through Project ChildSafe, NSSF has partnered with over 15,000 law enforcement agencies to distribute more than 41 million free firearm safety kits, each including a cable-style gun lock. Law enforcement agencies which partner with Project ChildSafe are also provided access to numerous resources they can leverage as part of their community policing efforts, including messaging that highlights the availability of these free safety kits and the importance of safe firearm storage.
Not only does promoting and practicing safe firearm storage make common sense, but it is perhaps the most direct action that gun owners can take to ensure firearms are not unlawfully or accidentally misused. Every firearm that is properly stored is one less firearm that is vulnerable to being stolen or tragically misused by a child or at-risk person.
Stopping Illicit Sales
Another concrete action that we can take to support law enforcement is doing what we can to prevent access to firearms by prohibited persons. This means taking steps to recognize suspicious purchasing activities, denying sales to suspected straw purchasers and reporting these incidents to law enforcement.
NSSF’s Don’t Lie for the Other Guy™ program, a 25-year-old partnership with Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), is another key Real Solution which aims to educate both firearm retailers and the public about illegal straw purchases – including suspicious behaviors to look out for when conducting a firearm sale and the consequences one can face for engaging in an illegal straw purchase.
While there is no surefire way to prevent a determined criminal from illicitly obtaining a firearm, ensuring that firearm retailers and their employees know the warning signs of, and how to properly respond to, a potential straw purchase are critical steps that we can take to ensure that firearms are not illegally diverted. Since the inception of the Don’t Lie campaign, NSSF has distributed retailer educational kits to firearm retailers across America to assist ATF in educating them to be better able to identify and prevent an illegal straw purchase.
Educating the public that it is a serious crime to straw purchase a firearm can also help stop these crimes from occurring in the first place – the result that we all want to see at the end of the day. NSSF’s Don’t Lie retailer kits also provide retailers with numerous point-of-sale displays that can be used to help ensure that every customer is aware of these consequences as soon as they walk through the door or approach the sales counter.
Supporting Safety Never Stops
That’s not all. NSSF has been the driving force to improve the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) through the FIX NICS® campaign. Starting in 2013, NSSF helped changed the law in 16 states and in 2018, backed the widely bipartisan federal Fix NICS Act, which was signed into law. This law ensures that all disqualifying records are submitted to the FBI’s NICS so firearm retailers can be confident that the background checks they complete are accurate.
NSSF also partners with the ATF for Operation Secure Store® to voluntarily improve security at firearm retailers to deter and prevent burglaries and robberies. When firearms are stolen from licensed retailers, NSSF matches ATF reward offers up to $5,000 for information leading to the recovery of those stolen firearms and the arrest and conviction of the criminals committing those crimes.
While National Police Week presents us with this opportunity to focus on recognizing and honoring the hard work and sacrifice of law enforcement officers across the country, it is important to remember that their work never stops. It is 24/7/365, and our support for their efforts should be the same. Partnerships like Project ChildSafe and Don’t Lie for the Other Guy, along with other Real Solutions promoted by NSSF, give our law enforcement the resources they need to help prevent tragic accidents before they occur.
Tim Lachance is NSSF’s Assistant General Counsel and previously served as a reserve police officer with the York, Maine Police Department.
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