David Dixon pulled into his Condos at Mill River complex in October after a late-night work shift. He locked his Dodge truck and proceeded to make the 50-foot walk to his first-level unit.

The journeyman power lineman figured his camouflaged Benelli shotgun obscured in the backseat from an earlier duck hunting trip was safe. The complex, which hugs the Spokane River between Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls, hadn't experienced any noticeable misdeeds, he said, since he’d moved in a year ago.

But sometime between 10:30 p.m. and 4:45 a.m., Dixon's tinted passenger window was smashed by a prowler. The cherished gun, which Dixon owned for more than a decade, was stolen.

He hastily filed a police report and contacted Black Sheep Sporting Goods to get the shotgun's serial number, which was then forwarded to the National Crime Information Center database.

The 32-year-old wasn't concerned about the loss of the spendy gun as much as it being in a criminal's hands.

"The only thing I was worried about was there was a gun at large. You don't know how unstable criminals are," Dixon said. "Some would steal it to sell it, others could use it and kill someone.

"You used to be able to leave a gun in your truck or house and not have to worry about it, but times have changed."

Dixon’s firearm is just one of 156 guns reported stolen to the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office (68), Coeur d'Alene Police Department (57) and Post Falls Police Department (31) in 2016. In a county with roughly 150,000 residents, that's more than one stolen gun per 1,000 people.

Between 300,000 and 600,000 privately owned firearms in the U.S. are stolen every year, according to a survey by Harvard and Northeastern University. In a 2012 study, 952 stolen guns in Idaho were reported to NCIC.

Since convicted felons can't purchase firearms, they attain them by illegal means. A recent University of Pittsburgh study suggests eight of 10 gun crimes aren't committed by lawful gun owners.

While the majority of American gun thefts occur in metropolitan areas, North Idaho isn't immune to rashes of these crimes, which are typically crimes of opportunity, according to Post Falls Police Chief Scot Haug.

Haug said most area gun thefts come from households. Leaving a gun in a vehicle heightens the chances of gun theft substantially as car prowling in the area increases.

Of the 31 stolen guns reported to PFPD this year, 11 thefts were from cars. For the Coeur d'Alene Police Department, 17 of the 57 stolen guns were from cars.

Haug, a 30-year member of the department, remembers when guns hanging from a back-window rack was the norm in this hunting-centric region. He never encouraged it, though, and now considers that a rarity.

"You used to always see rifles in the back of trucks, but not anymore. That's a good thing," Haug said. "You should never leave a gun in your car. There can be tragic consequences."

Coeur d'Alene Police Department Detective Jared Reneau echoed Haug.

"People are carrying more guns on a more frequent basis and this is a pretty hunting-heavy area," Reneau told The Press. "People are generally pretty good about not leaving their guns in their car or house in plain sight, It's all about being a responsible gun owner.”

So why have locals become more and more reluctant to keep guns — be it a rifle for protection or a hunting rifle — in their automobiles over the years?

"As our communities grow, so do our crimes," said Haug, referencing Kootenai County's 115 percent population growth since 2000. "And, a lot of the criminals come here from Spokane.”