Reduce Risks — Lethal Means Safety

~70%

of Veteran suicides in Wisconsin involve a firearm

90%

of firearm suicide attempts are fatal vs. 5% for other methods

20%

of all Wisconsin suicides are Veterans

The Crisis Window

Suicidal Crises Are Often Brief

Most suicide attempts happen within minutes to hours of the decision. The gap between impulse and action is the intervention window. Reducing access to a lethal method during this window — even temporarily — can save a life.

Most people who survive a suicide attempt do not go on to die by suicide. Time and distance from lethal means is the intervention.

Time to act: 24% attempt in under 5 minutes, 48% under 20 minutes, 71% within an hour

Source: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health / Means Matter Research

Owning a handgun: 2x higher risk for suicide. Storing a firearm loaded: 4x higher risk.

Research on firearm access and suicide risk — Harvard Injury Control Research Center

Why Storage Matters

Access = Risk

Owning a handgun is associated with 2× higher suicide risk. Storing a firearm loaded is associated with 4× higher suicide risk.

This does not mean Veterans should not own firearms — it means how and where firearms are stored matters enormously during a period of crisis. Storing temporarily does not mean giving up your rights.

Method Lethality

Firearms Are Uniquely Lethal

Firearm injury has an 89.6% case fatality rate — far higher than any other suicide method. Drug ingestion, the most common method used in attempts, has a 1.9% fatality rate.

This stark difference means that reducing access to firearms during a crisis window has a much greater impact on survival than reducing access to other means.

Chart: Lethality of suicide attempt by method — firearm 89.6%, drowning 56.4%, hanging 52.7%, gas 30.5%, jumping 27.9%, drug ingestion 1.9%, cutting 0.7%

Lethality of suicide attempt by method (% fatal) — Spicer & Miller, 2000

Suicide deaths by method: Male Veterans 69.4% firearm vs Female Veterans 41.9% firearm

Veteran suicide deaths by method and gender — VA National Veteran Suicide Prevention Report

Veterans Specifically

Veteran Suicide by Method

Firearms account for 69.4% of male Veteran suicides and 41.9% of female Veteran suicides — significantly higher than the general population.

For women Veterans, poisoning is the second most common method — making medication safety counseling equally important in female Veteran care.

Gun Storage for Your Lifestyle

Gun storage options: Cable Lock ($10–$50), Gun Case ($10–$150), Lock Box ($25–$350), Electronic Lock Box ($50–$350), Full Size and Biometric Gun Safes ($200–$2,500)

NSSF / Project ChildSafe — Gun Storage for Your Lifestyle. Visit ProjectChildSafe.org for more information.

Live Today · Put It Away — Wisconsin Storage Options

🏪 Participating Gun Shop Storage

Wisconsin gun shops partnered with Live Today Put It Away will store your firearm temporarily — voluntarily, no questions asked. This is the simplest, most secure option.

Find participating dealers →

🔐 Lock It — Separate the Key

Use a trigger lock, cable lock, or gun safe — and give the key to a trusted person who does not live with you. Free cable locks available at many WI gun shops and law enforcement agencies.

KeepItSecure.net →

🔥 FLAME Program — Research Survey

The FLAME Program (Medical College of Wisconsin / AHW) studies firearm lethal means safety among Wisconsin Veterans. Your participation helps improve Veteran suicide prevention research.

Take the FLAME Program Survey →

🎯 Shooting Range / Sporting Goods

Some Wisconsin shooting ranges and sporting goods stores accept temporary storage, especially for Veterans. Call ahead to confirm.

🤝 Trusted Person

Ask a trusted family member, friend, or fellow Veteran to hold your firearm temporarily. Make sure they understand the situation and can keep it secure.

💊 Medication Safety

Remove stockpiled medications from the home during a crisis. Wisconsin medication disposal sites available statewide — no questions asked.

WI medication disposal resources →

🚨 Crisis — Immediate Action

If a Veteran is in immediate danger, call 911. Inform the dispatcher a Veteran may be in mental health crisis. Ask about Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) officers.

Call 988 Press 1 — Veterans Crisis Line

For Clinicians & Healthcare Providers

Means Safety Counseling

Means safety counseling is one of the highest-impact interventions a clinician can provide to a Veteran at risk for suicide. Brief conversations about firearm storage — even a few minutes — have been shown to change Veteran behavior.

Therapeutic Risk Management (TRM) provides structured, evidence-based guidance for acute and chronic risk stratification. Use the clinical tools below to guide patient conversations.

SPRC Means Safety Counseling VA Lethal Means Resources

Therapeutic Risk Management — Acute and Chronic risk stratification table for clinical practice

Therapeutic Risk Management (TRM) — Acute & Chronic risk stratification. MIRECC / VA clinical tool.

Medication Safety Counseling

Lethal Means Safety — Medications

For Veterans at risk, medication-specific lethal means safety counseling (LMSC) involves assessing whether medications are potentially toxic and working with providers to reduce stockpiling risk.

Key steps: Is the medication potentially toxic? Is it essential? If not essential and toxic — remove from household. If essential — increase safety of storage, limit quantities dispensed, discuss blister packaging.

Rocky Mountain MIRECC Resources →

Medication-Specific Lethal Means Safety Counseling flowchart — Rocky Mountain MIRECC

Medication-Specific Lethal Means Safety Counseling (LMSC) — Rocky Mountain MIRECC, VA

For Wisconsin Gun Shop Owners

Join Live Today · Put It Away

Wisconsin gun shops and shooting ranges are on the front lines of Veteran suicide prevention. By joining the program, you receive free training, materials, and the knowledge that your participation is directly saving lives.

Live Today Put It Away Program → 🔥 FLAME Program Survey →

Secure It. Save a Life.