Child access prevention laws and firearm storage in the US: Associations by law stringency and social vulnerability

OBJECTIVE: It is unclear whether Child Access Prevention (CAP) laws influence firearm storage.We sought to analyze the association of CAP laws with loaded and unlocked firearm storage. METHODS: We used logistic regressions to analyze survey data of 2264 firearm owners from a 2023 nationally representative U.S. SAMPLE: Secondary analyses disaggregated CAP laws by stringency (i.e., liability thresholds for negligent storage) and examined associations by parental status and county social vulnerability. RESULTS: Nearly one-third of U.S. firearm owners reported storing at least one firearm loaded and unlocked (unsecure storage). Residence in a CAP law state was only associated with lower odds of unsecure storage in unadjusted models; however, firearm-owning adults in states with the most stringent CAP laws were less likely to report unsecure storage than those in non-CAP law states even after covariate adjustment. In analyses stratified by county social vulnerability, CAP laws were only associated with lower odds of unsecure storage in the least vulnerable counties. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that the relationship between CAP laws and firearm storage varies depending on the stringency of the law and county social vulnerability. Understanding how these and other factors drive effect heterogeneity will inform CAP laws and implementation efforts.