YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - The Mahoning County Prosecutor's Office has partnered with the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office and Mahoning County Mental Health and Recovery Board to launch a joint initiative to distribute free gun locks to residents.

This effort was made possible through Project ChildSafe, which is a national firearm safety education program. The locks were awarded to the Sheriff's Office who then partnered with the Prosecutor's Office and Mental Health and Recovery Board to ensure broad distribution and community outreach.

Additionally, the Mental Health and Recovery Board received another 200 gun locks from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The distribution events will take place Tuesday, May 27 and Thursday, May 29 from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. at the Mahoning County Prosecutor's Office on West Boardman Street in downtown Youngstown.

Additional opportunities to obtain gun locks will be available at community events throughout the year.

This is all part of an effort to reduce gun-related incidents by encouraging secure firearm storage in comes across Mahoning County.

So far in 2025, 58% of suicide deaths in Mahoning County involved firearms. According to a press release, gun locks help reduce suicide because the time it takes to unlock a gun allows for time to reflect and think, which can cause a crisis to be diverted.