CNB HUNTING/FISHING DELAWARE: Register for mandatory wild turkey hunting courses

DOVER (Feb., 2020) – With Delaware’s annual spring wild turkey hunting season approaching, DNREC’s Division of Fish & Wildlife Hunter Education

Program reminds both resident and non-resident hunters

age 13 and older that they must pass a Division-Approved turkey hunting course before they can legally hunt turkeys in the First State. Also, hunters age 13 and older born after Jan. 1, 1967, must have completed an approved basic hunter education safety course and have a course card/number. These hunter education requirements have collectively helped Delaware turkey hunters achieve an excellent hunting safety record.

Registration is now open for one-day turkey hunting courses offered from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. by the Division of Fish & Wildlife at the following locations in Kent, New Castle, and Sussex counties:

· Kent County – Saturday, March 7, Little Creek Hunter Education Training Center, 3018 Bayside Drive, Dover, DE 19901

· New Castle County – Saturday, March 14, Ommelanden Hunter/Trapper Education Training Center and Range, 1205 River Road, New Castle, DE 19720

· Sussex County – Sunday, March 29, Lewes Fire Department, Station #2 at Nassau, 32198 Janice Road, Lewes, DE 19958

Delaware’s turkey hunter education course teaches turkey hunting safety, as well as the state’s current wild turkey hunting laws and regulations. Students also learn about Delaware’s wild turkey history, as well wild turkey biology and behavior, and turkey calling that can help improve turkey hunting success. While required for all hunters age 13 and older, youth 10 through 12 years of age can also take the course.

Successful completion of the course enables students to obtain their Delaware Turkey Hunter Safety Card or have the turkey course certification added to their Delaware Hunter Education Card. Proof of both basic hunter education and turkey hunting safety certification must be carried while in the field turkey hunting.

Students planning to attend one of the turkey courses must register in advance. To register for a course, click

Hunter Education Online Access

. After logging in, click “Sign me up” and select “Mandatory Turkey Ed.” Students may also contact the Hunter Education Office at 302-735-3600, ext. 1, to register or for additional information.

Delaware’s 2020 wild turkey season will run from Saturday, April 11 through Saturday, May 9, excluding Sundays, with a youth/non-ambulatory disabled turkey hunt on Saturday, April 4. For more information on wild turkey hunting in Delaware, click on

2019-2020 Delaware Hunting and Trapping Guide

. The guide is also available in printed form at DNREC’s Dover licensing desk in the Richardson & Robbins Building, 89 Kings Highway, Dover, DE 19901, and from

license agents

throughout the state.

ICE, and Law Enforcement Agencies Address Dangers of New York\’s Green Light Law

WASHINGTON (February 21, 2020)– – The acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director and federal, state and local law enforcement officials hosted a news conference today to address how the Green Light Law in the state of New York impacts public safety. Hosted at the Rensselaer County Sheriff’s Office in Troy, New York, 17 federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies gathered to implore the State of New York to consider the ramifications of the Green Light Law.

“By restricting access to all DMV information, the Green Light Law stands as a dangerous roadblock to ongoing federal investigations into a broad range of criminal activity,” said Acting ICE Director Matthew T. Albence. “Information sharing is the lifeblood of law enforcement. The inability to access this information puts our sworn federal agents and officers, and the communities we serve, unnecessarily at risk.”

ICE is not asking the State of New York to provide a list of illegal aliens, or to identify which individuals in its databases are here illegally, Albence explained at the press conference. ICE needs access to the information – just like all other law enforcement agencies that work in the state – to support investigative efforts, not only in New York, but also across the country and around the world, he said. ICE’s ability to identify and dismantle a transnational criminal organization often depends on getting the right piece of information into the right hands at the right time.

The National Sheriffs Association, New York State Sheriffs Association, New York State Police Chiefs, Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, New York City Sergeants Benevolent Association, Rensselaer County Executive, Rensselaer County Sheriff, Rensselaer County Clerk, Washington County Sheriff, Saratoga County Sheriff, Albany County Legislator, Saratoga County Clerk, New York Fraternal Order of Police, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) New York, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of New York, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York, the Erie County Clerk, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection participated.

Colorado/Las Vegas Drug Dealers Sentenced For Trafficking Heroin Seized in Secaucus Hotel

TRENTON

– Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced that a Colorado man was sentenced to prison today after being convicted at trial of trafficking 31 kilograms of heroin seized from his hotel

room in Secaucus by the New Jersey State Police and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Anthony R. Koon, 58, of Pueblo, Colo., was sentenced today to 10 years in state prison, including over three years of parole ineligibility, by Superior Court Judge Patrick J. Arre in Hudson County. Koon was found guilty on June 25, 2019, by a Hudson County jury of charges of first-degree possession of heroin with intent to distribute, second-degree conspiracy, and third-degree possession of heroin. Koon’s state sentence will be consecutive to a nine-year federal prison sentence Koon is currently serving as the result of a drug conviction in U.S. District Court in Illinois.

Koon’s co-defendant, Alan A. Alderman, 74, of Las Vegas, Nev., was sentenced on Dec. 13, 2019 to five years in state prison by Judge Arre. Alderman was tried with Koon in June, but the jury in that trial was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on Alderman. Alderman was retried and was found guilty on Oct. 10, 2019 of second-degree conspiracy to distribute heroin and third-degree possession of heroin.

Deputy Attorneys General Omari Reid and Heather Hausleben tried Koon for the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau. DAG Reid and Deputy Attorney General Amy Sieminski tried Alderman in October. DAG Reid handled the sentencing hearing today for Koon. The trial teams were assisted by Deputy Attorney General Sarah Brigham of the DCJ Appellate Bureau. The men were indicted in an investigation by the New Jersey State Police Violent & Organized Crime Control Bureau Trafficking North Unit and DEA’s New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, Group T-42. The New York Drug Enforcement Task Force comprises agents and officers of the DEA, New York City Police Department, and the New York State Police.

“The 31 kilograms of heroin seized in this case represent tens of thousands of doses of heroin that would have fueled addiction, misery and death if the DEA Task Force and New Jersey State Police had not interceded,” said Attorney General Grewal. “I commend the prosecutors in our Division of Criminal Justice who secured these verdicts and prison sentences, as well as all of the members of law enforcement who investigated. We are fighting the opioid epidemic on all fronts in New Jersey, expanding prevention and treatment strategies while aggressively prosecuting criminals like Koon and Alderman who traffic opioids into our communities.”

“We will continue to work with the New Jersey State Police, DEA, and our other law enforcement partners to target the major suppliers of opioids who are ruthlessly profiting from addiction in New Jersey,” said Director Veronica Allende of the Division of Criminal Justice. “Interstate drug trafficking demands an interstate response, and this collaborative, multi-jurisdictional investigation is a great example of how we target this type of criminal organization.”

“The fact that troopers and detectives were able to prevent such a massive quantity of heroin from hitting the streets is a victory in and of itself, because somewhere among the thousands of doses seized was one that would claim a life or send another spiraling out of control, consumed by addiction,” said Colonel Patrick Callahan of the New Jersey State Police. “We are committed to combating the opioid epidemic through collaborative investigations and by continuing to focus our efforts on prevention through education.”

“Drug trafficking investigations have uncovered numerous means and methods used by criminal organizations to transport illicit drugs into our communities and homes,” said Special Agent in Charge Ray Donovan of the DEA New York Division. “This sentencing is the final step in bringing to justice two traffickers responsible for delivering 31kilograms of heroin into our backyard. I applaud our partners in the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force and the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General for their dogged efforts in this investigation.”

New York State Police Superintendent Keith M. Corlett said, “As a result of interagency coordination and commitment among our law enforcement partners, two dangerous drug traffickers have been brought to justice. Heroin and other drugs perpetuate a cycle of addiction and criminal behavior which in turn threatens the safety and security of our neighborhoods. I want to thank our members and law enforcement partners for their tenacious dedication to tracking illegal drugs and intercepting them at their source before they can be distributed on our streets.”

The defendants were arrested on Feb. 1, 2016, after NYDETF Group T-42 developed information that a gold-colored Mercedes Benz linked to a large-scale narcotics trafficking organization had traveled from New York to a hotel in Secaucus, N.J. NYDETF Group T-42 enlisted the New Jersey State Police Trafficking North Unit to assist them in the investigation. The joint investigation revealed that several members of the narcotics network had traveled to Secaucus that day to meet and exchange heroin.

Initially, two men were stopped in a minivan after they left the parking lot of the hotel, where they were seen meeting with the occupant or occupants of the gold Mercedes. Those men, Oscar R. Felix, 42, of Menifee, Calif., and John M. Ulloa, 38, of Bronx, N.Y., were linked through further investigation to Alderman, who was determined to be staying at the hotel. Alderman and Koon, who was staying with Alderman, were arrested inside the hotel, where investigators discovered two gym bags secured with locks in a closet of their hotel room. Investigators executed a search warrant for the hotel room the following day and discovered 31 kilograms of heroin in the gym bags. They also found $14,300 in U.S. currency wrapped in black electrical tape when they executed a search warrant for Koon’s Jeep.

Felix and Ulloa pleaded guilty to second-degree conspiracy to distribute heroin and each man was sentenced on Dec. 11, 2017 to six years in state prison.

Defense Attorneys:

For Koon

: Michael R. Shulman, Esq., Jersey City, N.J.

For Alderman:

Assistant Deputy Public Defender Andre Vitale, Hudson County.

Football Icon Jerry Rice Makes Big Play for Kidney Health

Jerry Rice is working with the National Kidney Foundation to promote kidney health

(NAPSI)—Fans might think Jerry Rice, at 56, should be satisfied to sail silently into the sunset reflecting on his Pro Football Hall of Fame status, three Super Bowl rings, and two decades in the National Football League. Indeed, the iconic wide receiver retired his professional cleats years ago.

Yet, he still uses his youthful, seemingly boundless energy to keep carrying the ball for the cause closest to his heart: tackling chronic kidney disease (CKD). “My brother Tom has CKD,” Rice said. “I’ve watched him go to dialysis three days a week for years, which is really hard on the body. He’s a very positive individual. Still, sometimes I spend the long hours that he endures just sitting by his side. It was my brother, after all, who loved, encouraged and pushed me early on by telling me that I had to make it to the NFL.”

Getting The Word Out

To that end, in a new PSA series for the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) to be broadcast nationwide, Rice focuses on promoting kidney health and raising awareness of kidney disease. The NKF is the largest, most comprehensive and long-standing organization dedicated to the awareness, prevention and treatment of kidney disease.

Given Rice’s genuine concern about and personal connection to the disease, NKF enlisted the widely beloved sports legend to help to speak to the general public as well as kidney patients. He already has lots of practice doing so up close and personally whenever he joins his brother at a neighborhood dialysis center in Jackson, Miss.

“I’d go there to mainly be with my brother, of course, but I always walk around the room to say hello and socialize with the other dialysis patients,” Rice said. “You don’t realize it until you see for yourself in centers that there are lots of people on dialysis. It puts everything in perspective whenever I start complaining. When I visit the dialysis center, people often know who I am and are happy to see me, and if I can bring a smile to some faces and make them forget even for a second, that warms my heart. That’s how I felt playing football, seeing the smiles in the stands and helping people to forget problems for a little while.”

Rice is also part of NKF’s continuing and growing Heart Your Kidneys (#HeartYourKidneys) public campaign to help elevate awareness of the kidneys to the status of other vital organs such as the heart. He is amazed that most people know very little about their kidneys and that some don’t know the kidneys are located in the lower back below the rib cage—or that each person has two. Rice hopes his new PSAs with NKF will help change that.

“It’s important to me to keep working hard to get the word out with NKF, because you can see that this really hits home for me in more ways than one,” Rice said.

Kidney Facts And Jerry Rice’s Tips

• African Americans are three times more likely to experience kidney failure than are people of other races.

• Because kidney disease often has no symptoms, it can go unnoticed until it is very advanced.

• The kidneys’ major function is to filter out waste products and excess fluid from the body.

• Eat healthy and drink water instead of sugary drinks.

• Exercise regularly.

• Ask your doctor about your kidney health.

Learn More

For further information about kidney disease and how to tell whether you’re at risk, call (800) 622-9010 or visit

www.kidney.org

The essential guide on how to understand and excel an engineering course

Gloucestercitynews.net(February 20, 2020)–Engineering is among the careers that are most respected in the world. It provides for a fulfilling journey that involves creativity, innovation and most often, attractive salary packages. There are several branches of engineering that one can choose to follow, for example, electrical engineering, civil engineering, computer engineering, and many others. Regardless of the field of engineering one picks, the course is filled with complex math and scientific principles all through the learning journey. Therefore, it is important for one to work out a

foolproof plan to guide him or her through the course of study

. Although the uphill task of complex projects and assignments has been solved by websites that provide

engineering homework help

, the following are simple useful tips to guide engineering students in understanding engineering courses and to succeed in their academic careers.

1. Find people who inspire you, learn their ways and routines

If you are interested in a specific engineering discipline, find people who have been successful in the industry and make them your idols. You can easily find out information on them from the internet, not just about them but for just about any other prominent person in that specific field. Use the internet to look into what\’s helped these people and their organizations become so successful. Then emulate their good traits in your personal, academic and professional life. You will be surprised how much inspiration you can get by just studying these people.

2. Involve yourself in as many projects as possible

Try to participate in every experiential learning opportunity that your schedule allows. This way, you\’ll get to learn something unique with every experience. You will also have more to show your examiners during your final year projects, not to mention the portfolio you will already have to present to your potential employers when you graduate, unlike other students who will only be able to list their coursework. In addition, you\’ll be far more likely to master the knowledge you\’ve been getting in classes because you\’ll be applying it and, in the process, boosting your communication and interpersonal skills.

3. Learn the value of networking

When it comes to excelling on campus, whom you know and interact with is almost as important as what you gain in class. Attend several other lectures on your campus and introduce yourself to the lecturers. Familiarize yourself with your school\’s alumni association to get a list of alumni from your field of study to find those who may wish to connect with you. You can make use of E-mail, use LinkedIn or other social media tools to connect online. However, remember there’s no substitute for a traditional, face-to-face meeting, it is always the best.

4. Work in teams

Whether it\’s a class project of creating a solar-powered car, participating in a sport, or writing essays for the school paper, get involved with your peers because most things require a team effort to produce great results. Throughout your career after graduation, you\’ll work in teams, so the skills you develop in school will help prepare you to lead teams when you graduate.

5. Seek informal leadership roles within your class

You\’re always a leader, whether you\’re officially in charge of the members of your group school project or not. It sounds counterintuitive, but you can lead from any position in a team by influencing how people work together and how they make decisions. You will learn how to recognize and deal with various situations from any position in a team, you\’ll be seen as a leader even when you take on your first job or internship. The obvious advantage of taking leadership positions is that you will always be the first to receive any information from the institution or your lecturers. You will be better suited to enjoy more resources from the class.

6. Identify your flaws and correct them

As with any course majors, engineering students need improvement. If you are part of a group, try to create a way to get feedback from your peers, group leaders, and professors. When you have concrete feedback on how you are faring, you can work to improve your academic grades and even other skills including communication and leadership. Furthermore, you\’ll learn how to receive and give constructive criticism. That\’s absolutely necessary for your future career.

7. Take a business class

As a student engineer, it\’s not enough for you to be technically proficient. You need to learn to be business savvy. A business class will also help you read and understand organization charts, you will know how to negotiate contracts, and be familiar with other functions that every engineer needs to know. This will also help you in the future to understand what to do when an accountant, lawyer, or manager gets in the way of your work. A business course will definitely take you a long way.

8. Take a design class

The world of engineering goes way beyond problem sets, laboratories, and complex theory. You may need to take a visual design course to learn to represent ideas graphically. You can supplement the design topics in your coursework by taking a cognitive science course to learn how to interpret the engineering problems in the world and understand them better. While you are at it, you can take a literature course to develop your knowledge and which will help you write and communicate more effectively.

9. Make your holidays productive

Lecturers place tremendous value on practical experience when making student assessment s to grade them. Ensure you seek out internship opportunities actively and early in your academic career. Try to demonstrate through your internships a series of evolving learning experiences; also use the internships to build your portfolio of actual projects you are involved in. Students who can show a commitment to using their summer to continue to learn are always viewed more seriously by lecturers and future employers

10. Pick the right company

As an undergraduate student, you might feel alone when confronted with hard decisions about the courses to take, or even balancing school work and your personal life. You won\’t feel alone if you develop a healthy circle of friends. Just as a company has a board that guides the organization, you can stock your friends\’ list with peers from your engineering class or other academic fields to act as a support structure for you. You can as well as have former teachers and knowledgeable family friends to also be there for you during your academic career.

image courtesy of unsplash.com

Alyssa Donato of Cedarville, NJ Named to 2020 Kutztown University Softball Team

KUTZTOWN, PA (02/20/2020)– Kutztown University will have 21 student-athletes representing its softball program for the 2020 season, including Alyssa Donato of Cedarville, NJ (08311).

The Golden Bears opened their season with a 4-5 record across their first two tournaments. Head coach Judy Lawes is in her 33rd season at KU, 19 wins shy of 1,000 for her career.

KU will next hit the diamond for their spring break trip beginning Saturday, March 7, against Winston-Salem State in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Golden Bears will then play six days in Florida.

Softball website

About Kutztown University of Pennsylvania

Founded in 1866, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania is a proud member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education located on 289 acres nestled in the beautiful East Penn Valley in Berks County, between Reading and Allentown, Pennsylvania. KU is just two hours from New York City; 90 minutes from Philadelphia.

As the region\’s center for excellence in academics, culture and public engagement, KU\’s programs and reputation for quality offer students the opportunity to discover lifelong avenues of learning and discovery. KU students select from more than 100 areas of study within four colleges in a diverse liberal arts academic environment. To complement their studies, KU\’s NCAA Division II athletics program with 21 varsity sports joins the more than 160 student clubs and organizations providing students with a variety of activities for learning and discovery.

Now Available, Beard Guyz® Micro-Mist Beard Oil with Pump

Glendale Heights, IL – Beard Guyz®,

a Men’s Care brand from Universal Beauty Products, Inc., has expanded its grooming product lineup for 2020 with a lightweight oil

Beard Guyz® products

that’s applied directly to the beard using a proprietary pump sprayer. Beard Guyz Micro-Mist Beard Oil softens and moisturizes the beard without weighing it down and is

conveniently sized to meet the busy lifestyle needs of modern sporting enthusiasts.

Many beard oil products require the use of hands to apply the oil and shape the beard. Beard Guyz Micro-Mist Beard Oil bypasses this step, allowing oil to be sprayed directly on the beard for a more controlled and even application – no hands, hassle or cleanup required.

“We’re excited about crafting a beard oil that is convenient to apply and provides moisturization in a hands-free manner for sporting enthusiasts,” says Ricky Arias, Brand Manager – Beard Guyz. “Beard Guyz products are designed to help beard wearers look their best for life’s important as well as everyday moments and we think our new oil will do just that, all while saving them precious time.”

Beard Guyz Micro-Mist Beard Oil is available in a 1.0-ounce size for convenient use at home or on-the go. Micro-Mist Beard Oil provides lightweight moisturization and includes a deodorizer.

“With beards becoming more popular every year, the grooming landscape is changing,” says John Fitzgerald, Senior Director – Marketing/Men’s Division at Universal Beauty Products. “Our customers require solutions with the versatility to meet their grooming needs in any situation and time of day. We believe that our Micro-Mist Beard Oil meets and exceeds expectations for convenience and quality.”

Beard Guyz® Micro-Mist Beard Oil is available starting February 2020 at select retail outlets throughout the United States, including Bed Bath & Beyond® and Giant®, as well as at online retailers including

Amazon.com

and

beardguyz.com

###

About Universal Beauty Products, Inc.

Universal Beauty Products, Inc., located in Glendale Heights, Illinois, is a leading manufacturer of personal care products. With over 10 brands, Universal Beauty Products offers an extensive portfolio of grooming, beard, hair and skin products. The Men’s Care division includes Beard Guyz®, focused on men’s beard care, and Van Der Hagen®, focused on the flourishing grooming market. The company headquarters operates a 200,000+ square foot facility that includes research and development laboratories, sales, marketing, manufacturing, customer services, administration and warehousing and is committed to producing performance-proven products.

New Jersey Man Charged With Coercing And Enticing Commercial Sex Workers

NEWARK, N.J. – A New Jersey man who allegedly lured commercial sex workers to travel from out of state to engage in prostitution and other sexual acts by use of force, violence and threats in and around Middlesex County, New Jersey, appeared in court February 19, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Jose Torres, 42, is charged by complaint with two counts of coercion and enticement. The defendant is scheduled to appear this afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Judge M. Page Kelly in Boston federal court. Torres was arrested on Feb. 14, 2020, in Boston.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

From May 2015 to October 2019, Torres persuaded, induced and enticed commercial sex workers to travel from various out of state locations, including Canada and New York, in order to engage in prostitution. Torres lured commercial sex workers to New Jersey with promises of large payments. When the commercial sex workers asked for payment, Torres became aggressive, often assaulting and raping them. Torres never paid the sex workers.

The coercion and enticement charges each carries a maximum term of 20 years’ imprisonment and a potential $250,000 fine.

The charges and allegations in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Emma Spiro of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Violent Crimes Unit in Newark.

U.S. Attorney Carpenito credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Gregory W. Ehrie in Newark; special agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian Michael; the Middlesex County, New Jersey, Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Christopher L. C. Kuberiet; and the Peabody, Massachusetts, Police Department, under the direction of Chief Thomas Griffin, with the investigation leading to the charges.

The charges and allegation in the complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Attention Anglers! Forum at Batsto Saturday

BATSTO, NJ–Anglers have two great opportunities to learn, comment and ask questions about the Division\’s freshwater programs at the

South Jersey Fisheries Forum this Saturday

and the

Trout Meeting next Saturday

Pequest.

Saturday\’s forum at the Batsto Village Visitor\’s Center in

Wharton State Forest

will include presentations on

Harmful Algal Blooms

Largemouth Bass Virus Sampling

, and

Warmwater Fish Production

. Discussion topics will include the

Warmwater Fisheries Management Plan

(what do YOU want to see covered) and

Potential Regulation Changes for 2023

.The forum will begin at 10:00 a.m.

The annual

Trout Meeting at

Pequest

will be Saturday, February 29 at 10:00 a.m.

This year\’s meeting will cover:

2020 Hatchery Production

2020 Spring Trout Allocations

and a presentation on

Temperature Impacts on NJ\’s Wild Trout Populations

Batsto Forum Information and Directions

Trout Meeting Information

Pequest Directions

Research Shows Rifles and Shotguns Used More Often in Youth and Rural Suicides

Newswise — The researchers say their findings, published Feb. 3 in

Injury Epidemiology

suggest that adopting safety measures for rifles or shotguns may prevent suicides, particularly among young people and rural-area residents.

“Our goal as clinicians at Johns Hopkins Medicine is to save lives, and it’s concerning to see that it’s not just handguns, but long guns that are used commonly in youth suicide,” says

Paul Nestadt, M.D.,

assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. “Many of the safety protections that we have in place around the country typically don’t apply to long guns, and the data suggest that our strategy needs to be modified.”

In many states, there is no minimum age for owning long guns, and federal background checks are only required if buying from a licensed gun dealer. Requirements for permits and safety courses for rifles vary from state to state.

The public has long thought that handguns are more responsible for human deaths, including suicides, than long guns such as rifles and shotguns, which have been believed to be more commonly used for hunting or protection from wild animals. But now, in an analysis of data from 16 years of gun suicides in Maryland, Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers found that long guns were used more often in suicides by kids and teens than by adults, and were more commonly used in suicide by people in rural counties.

The data analysis reviewed 3,931 gun suicides in Maryland from 2003 to 2018. About 45% of children and teens used long guns to die by suicide, compared to 20% of adults over age 65 who used long guns. The researchers found that 52% of rural firearm suicides were by long gun, compared to 17% in urban counties. Using rifles for suicide increased by 60% during hunting season, when researchers say rifles may be out and more available.

“In the midst of a suicidal impulse, a person will use what they have. Firearms are particularly lethal. If one is easily available, that will be the method of choice,” says Nestadt. “Holidays and hunting season are times when many young people receive hunting rifles as gifts, and I would advise family members to also provide gun locks or gun storage cabinets with their present. Just adding an extra protective step could be enough of a barrier to protect their family member from making an impulsive decision.”

Additional authors on the study are Kevin MacKrell, Alexander McCourt and Cassandra Crifasi of Johns Hopkins, and David Fowler, formerly Maryland’s chief medical examiner.

Support for the study came from the James Wah Fund for Mood Disorders.

The authors don’t declare any conflicts.

SEE ORIGINAL STUDY