Many Cities Are Seeing A Rise In Guns Stolen From Cars : NPR

Target practice at Royal Range USA in Nashville, Tenn. Martin Kaste/NPR hide caption toggle caption Martin Kaste/NPR Target practice at Royal Range USA in Nashville, Tenn. Martin Kaste/NPR More guns are being stolen out of cars in America, particularly in states that have made it easier for people to carry firearms on the road. There are no reliable national numbers, but an NPR survey of a sampling of police departments reveals steady increases in reports of guns stolen from vehicles. In Atlanta, the number rose to 1,021 in 2018 from 439 in 2009. In St. Louis, it increased to 597 from 200 to in the same period. Some of Tennessee's biggest spikes have come just in the last few years in Tennessee. The number of guns reported stolen from vehicles statewide nearly doubled in one year. In 2016, 2,203 were reported; a year later, reports numbered, 4,064, according to figures provided to NPR by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. "The crime overall is not new, but the volume — the amount that we're seeing — is new," says Lt. Blaine Whited of the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. "It's enough to shock you." Whited runs the city's Juvenile Crime Task Force, and he says youths are often the ones stealing the guns. The kids know where they're at. Lt. Blaine Whited, Metropolitan Nashville Police Department "The kids know where they're at. They understand, 'We check enough door handles, we're gonna get something,' " Whited says. Last year, 659 guns were reported stolen out of vehicles in Nashville — a 70% jump over 2016. And police say those guns are being used in crimes, such as the February killing of a local musician[1]. Whited believes people have become too "comfortable" with the guns they keep in their cars. About a month

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