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ALBANY --
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigations, 10-year-old Rickie Jenkins' life ended at the hands of a seven-year-old with a shotgun - and law enforcement says education is key to avoiding these cases.

"Teaching them, that's where it starts. Parents, grandparents teaching them the safety and the facts of the guns, said Sheriff Reggie Rachals of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office.

Rachals says something as simple as filling a milk jug with water and shooting it in front of a child can leave a real impression and also shows the damage you can inflict with a gun.

However, there are multiple options for those who want to prevent a gun from firing at all,

"One you can put in the cylinder to keep the cylinder from closing. You have another type that you can put in the barrel to keep from obviously also the cylinder closing or the chamber being slid forward. You also have a style that go on the trigger that way the trigger couldn't even be pulled if it needed to be," said Anderson Aumsbaugh, manager of Mega Pawn in Leesburg.

Rachals and Aumsbaugh say these mechanisms have a lock and key that a responsible adult can hide somewhere safe - so they can access it if need be.

Experts also say safeties shouldn't just be used around children but around anybody that doesn't know how to properly operate a gun, even adults.

“If they don't know how to handle it, they can be just as much danger as a youngin’ handling it, and it causes some serious damage or death,” said Rachals.

"Proper knowledge of how to handle these guns is the key for everybody no matter what age you are, young and old.,” said Aumsbaugh.

To get your hands on something that will keep other's hands off, contact your local law enforcement agency - the gun locks are free for anyone interested.