Prattville partnership offers crisis firearm storage, support for veterans

A Prattville gunsmith shop has become a local safety valve for families facing a crisis that can turn deadly in minutes. Custom Tactics, a veteran-owned and operated business established in 2010, has joined S.A.F.E.R. Together, giving Autauga County residents a confidential place to arrange temporary firearm and ammunition storage when a military member, veteran or first responder needs immediate distance from a weapon.

The program is built around a simple goal: create a brief pause before an irreversible act. S.A.F.E.R. Together works with licensed firearm dealers and community partners to offer voluntary, confidential, temporary and secure storage, so firearms are not taken away permanently but held during a dangerous season while counseling, support and stabilization can begin. In Prattville and the surrounding Tri-county area, that gives families a concrete option inside a community where military service, law enforcement and fire rescue are deeply woven into daily life.

The urgency behind that model is stark. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ 2024 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report, which covers data from 2001 through 2022 and says 2022 is the most recent year in the report, found that firearms were used in 73.5% of veteran suicides nationwide and 86.4% in Alabama. The report also says veterans die by suicide at a rate more than twice that of non-veteran adults, and the VA has identified secure firearm storage as a key part of its prevention strategy. Research cited by the group says many suicide attempts happen within minutes of suicidal thoughts.

The Prattville partnership also fits into a statewide network that has been expanding across Alabama. Redland Rifle in Birmingham became a SAFER Together partner in June 2025, and My Gun Shop in Pelham became the third safe-storage site in September 2025. The effort is backed by Alabama’s Challenge, Veteran Service Organizations and the Birmingham VA Health Care System, which has publicly supported the program as a way to create a critical pause during high-risk moments.

The legal framework for those temporary holds was strengthened by the Houston/Hunter Act, which took effect in June 2025 after being enacted in April. Named for Houston Tumlin and Hunter Whitley, both of whom died by firearm suicide, the law gives participating federal firearms licensees protection when returning firearms at the end of a hold agreement. For Prattville, the addition of Custom Tactics turns that statewide safety net into a nearby option for families who need time, privacy and a chance to keep a crisis from becoming fatal.