Dear Members of Congress:

On January 31, 2018, 15 year-old Ethan Song from Guilford, Connecticut was killed by a .347 magnum handgun that was stored in a cardboard box at his friend’s house in his neighborhood. After their tragic loss, Ethan’s parents Kristin and Mike Song championed the passage of Connecticut’s Ethan’s Law to require gun owners to safely secure their firearms in their homes.

It’s time for Congress to set the federal standards for safe firearm storage to protect our children and loved ones. We urge you to pass Ethan’s Law. Every day, eight children and teens in the U.S. are unintentionally injured or killed with an improperly stored gun.

Senator Richard Blumenthal and Representative Rosa DeLauro’s research showed that:

1) Every year, an estimated 5,400,000 minors in the United States live in homes with at least one unsecured firearm.

2) percent of children under the age of 10 living in homes with firearms reported knowing the location of their parents’ firearms and 36 percent of those children reported handling their parents’ unsecured firearms.

(3) The presence of unsecured firearms in the home increases the risk of unintentional and intentional shootings. Over 75 percent of firearms used in youth suicide attempts and unintentional firearm injuries were stored in the residence of the victim, a relative, or a friend.

(4) The United States Secret Service and the Department of Education report that in 76 percent of deadly school shootings the attacker obtained the firearm from his or her own home or that of a relative.

(5) In the last decade nearly 2,000,000 firearms have been reported stolen. In 2016 alone, 238,000 firearms were reported stolen in the United States. Between 2010 and 2016, police recovered more than 23,000 stolen firearms across jurisdictions that were used to commit kidnappings, armed robberies, sexual assaults, murders, and other violent crimes.

(6) Higher levels of neighborhood gun violence drive depopulation, discourages commercial activity, and decreases property values, resulting in fewer business establishments, fewer jobs, lower home values, and lower home ownership rates.

(7) The negative economic impact of gun violence in communities is tied directly to the national economy and interstate commerce.

(8) Congress has the power under the interstate commerce clause and other provisions of the Constitution of the United States to enact measures ensuring firearms are securely stored.

There are over 400 million civilian-owned guns in America. Congress must work to promote responsible gun ownership by passing Ethan’s Law.

Sincerely,

Newtown Action Alliance