The Home Office is being called upon to address a critical loophole in shotgun legislation following the tragic death of Jairus Earl, a 15-year-old schoolboy who took his own life at his family’s holiday home in Dorset.
Jairus, who was stressed and anxious about upcoming GCSE exams, used one of his father’s shotguns to end his life. Though his father is a licensed shotgun owner residing in London, the family maintains a second home in Dorset where the firearms were also stored.
In late March 2024, the family brought several shotguns to their Dorset property, securely locking them in a cabinet. However, Dorset Police were never notified of the presence of these shotguns at the second residence, as current laws do not require licence holders to inform authorities when moving firearms between properties.
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On April 14, 2024, as Jairus and his father prepared to return to London, Jairus used one of the firearms in his father’s office to take his life, while his father was packing the guns into the car.
Dorset Coroner Rachael Griffin has issued a Prevention of Future Deaths report highlighting concerns about the lack of notification requirements when shotguns are stored or used at multiple properties owned by a licence holder. She emphasized that the regulation of shotguns is significantly less rigorous than that for firearms, despite both posing serious risks.
During the inquest, it was revealed that police visited the Dorset home in late March without knowledge of the shotguns stored there. The coroner stated that if authorities had been informed, the guns might have been removed or better monitored, potentially preventing the tragedy.
In her report, Mrs. Griffin stated: “There is a clear regulatory gap concerning shotgun licences when holders have more than one property. Unlike firearms, shotgun licence holders are not required to notify the police about other premises where guns are kept. This lack of communication between police forces and absence of location markers for shotguns at various addresses presents a serious risk to emergency responders and the public.”
The coroner has sent her report to the Home Office and the Department of Health, who have 56 days to respond and consider closing this legal gap.