CINCINNATI – Two Queen City entrepreneurs have developed a way to put gun safety in the hands of gun owners.
GunAlert launched this summer. This is a GPS tracking system that detects unauthorized movements, alerts the user within seconds and helps them quickly recover the firearm.
“What we want to do – we know there are guns out there, we're trying to make it easy for people to secure their guns and get notified when they move,” said co-creator Tom Lehn.
After the Cincinnati native retired from a wireless company in 2020, his former CEO asked him to work with a patent developer to develop the project. The development of both took about a year and a half, he said.
For Lehn, it is a passionate project for which safe storage and handling has always been a top priority.
“I’ve been a gun guy since I was in the Boy Scouts as a teenager,” he said. “I served as a Boy Scout leader for over 35 years, teaching children gun safety and how to shoot guns. I believe the more kids know about gun safety, the better off we will be.”
GunAlert uses cellular technology and an improved motion sensor so it is always discoverable and detects movement from the slightest movement.
The device syncs with a phone app and can be attached to the gun itself, a bag, suitcase or safe.
“When one of these things is picked up and moved, a notification is sent to my phone,” Lehn said.
Once a notification is received through the app, users will receive location updates every five minutes.
Gun owners can register as many GunAlert devices as they want in the app and even provide specific information, including serial numbers. Lehn said information can be helpful when communicating with police.
Firearm location data is only stored on the user's phone. Lehn's Level 2 security company does not store that information on its servers, he said.
Lehn said the system also helps reduce the risks of growing trends across the country and locally.
“It is estimated that between 70 and 90 percent of shootings by people under 18 occur either with a gun in the home or with a relative or friend's gun,” he said. “Sometimes when you have a gun in your vehicle, you may not look at it every day. You may not see them for a week. With this product you would be immediately alerted if someone took them out of your car.”
In Cincinnati it is also important to keep an eye on the trigger.
City leaders banded together last week to introduce a new law aimed at holding gun owners accountable when they are not responsible. Cincinnati City Councilmember Liz Keating has authored two new emergency ordinances.
They would make it a crime if gun owners don't immediately report their missing or stolen firearms, and would require those who misplace or mishandle a weapon to pay $200 to get it back from police Fee that Keating said would cover typical processing storage costs for each firearm.
The two ordinances were approved by the Public Safety and Governance Committee on Tuesday and will be presented to the full council for a vote.
“Both regulations really make sense. They are common sense,” said Deputy Mayor Jan Michele-Kearney.
For Lehn, GunAlert is also a matter of course for gun owners.
“Our product is designed to improve gun safety, but it is still the gun owner's primary responsibility to ensure they care for their guns,” he said. “The cool thing about this product is that it doesn’t matter what side of the gun issue you’re on – whether you’re pro-gun or anti-gun – everyone should care about gun safety.”
GunAlert is available on Amazon and Range USA stores and is compatible with both iOS and Android phones.
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