King County’s gun-violence prevention program got a boost this month from billboards and Sound Transit bus ads paid for by the U.S. Department of Justice. The $30,000 campaign encourages residents to safely store their guns to prevent them from being used to commit crimes.

A 2005 study found that safe storage reduces firearm suicides by 78 percent and unintentional shootings by 85 percent. King County’s LOK-IT-UP campaign is a partnership with Harborview, Seattle Children’s, Washington State Department of Health and multiple law enforcement agencies and gun retailers working together to promote safe firearm storage.

The Justice Department is helping promote King County’s program, called LOK-IT-UP, as part of a strategy to prevent guns being stolen and used by criminals.

“We need the public’s help to keep their firearms from becoming crime guns,” said U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. “Too often we see criminals using stolen firearms to commit drive by shootings, domestic assaults and even murders. Through the Project Safe Neighborhoods program, the U.S. Attorney’s Office is pleased to partner with King County in this media campaign to urge gun owners to practice safe, locked storage of their guns. A locked gun safe can create one more hurdle for those who want to steal, sell and use stolen guns for criminal purposes.”

Over half of the adults in this state who own firearms,nearly 1 million residents — store their guns unlocked. About 200,000 children in the state live in homes with unrestricted access to guns. The safe storage campaign is part of the county’s broader public-health approach to preventing gun violence, which kills more people in King County than car crashes.