“Ethan’s Law” Passes In House; Senate Next For Gun Storage Bill

GUILFORD, CT - “Ethan’s Law” - which would require all firearms, loaded and unloaded, to be safely stored in homes occupied by minors under 18 years of age - was passed with bipartisan support in the House Tuesday.

The bill, which passed by a 127-16 vote, would allow prosecutors to criminally charge the owner of a gun that isn’t properly stored. It now moves to the Senate.

Gov. Ned Lamont has already endorsed the legislation.

Connecticut’s current safe storage law only requires that loaded firearms be properly stored “if a minor is likely to gain access to the firearm without the permission of the parent or guardian of the minor.”Ethan Song, of Guilford, died of a self-inflicted gunshot. The 15-year-old accidentally shot himself in the head in January of 2018, the Waterbury state’s attorney’s office said after concluding its investigation.A juvenile friend of Ethan’s was charged with second-degree manslaughter in the death.

Ethan’s parents, Kristin and Mike Song of Guilford, have become nationally known advocates for stronger gun storage laws since their son’s death.

The Songs were in Hartford to watch the vote.

While happy with the vote, Kristin Song described the day as “bittersweet.”

“Sometimes in the morning, when I first wake up, I run through my day-whose got a game, who needs help with a school report, what am I making for dinner,” Kristin Song said. “You see I have never lived without my children, I have never had a quiet home, I have never gone so long without hearing my children laugh. For a moment, my mind plays a trick on me, for a moment I think I have my old life back. Then reality comes crashing through-Ethan is gone, there are no school reports that need editing, no lacrosse games to cheer for Ethan, no special family dinners to be made, no more kitchen dance parties.’’

“I want to applaud the Republicans who voted for Ethan’s Law today,” Kristin Song said. “The Republicans who stepped out of their comfort zone and perhaps upset the Connecticut Citizens Defense League (CCDL), exhibited courage-courage to stand up and protect innocent children, courage to stop the flow of guns into bad guys hands.”

She added: “I have heard from so many responsible gun owners that they do not understand how the National Rifle Association (NRA) has drifted so far from its primary purpose of firearm education and gun safety. I ask those gun owners, who want to see gun safety legislation pass, to reach out to your legislators.”

“We have so much more in common than what separate us. We all want to keep our loved ones safe, we all want to keep guns out of the hands of the bad guys, we all want a safer America,” Kristin Song said. “There is a balance between freedom and responsibility. Freedom is great, but it has always come with limit.”

The president of largest Second Amendment organization in Connecticut, Connecticut Citizens Defense League President Scott Wilson, has continually stated that the legislature’s focus is misdirected.

“What society and lawmakers should be focused on is the root causes of violence and the crimes associated with it,” Wilson has said. “People steal guns and people commit violence acts, inanimate objects do not.”

Wilson added: “We all want a safer environment to live in, making it even harder for law abiding citizens to possess firearms is the wrong approach. We urge our lawmakers to protect our Second Amendment rights.”

Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, told his colleagues: “My community, my hometown suffered an unspeakable tragedy. Ethan’s parents did everything right; they raised Ethan and two other kids as best as they could and yet, there was nothing they could do.“Somebody else, a different person improperly stored a firearm,” Scanlon said.

Looking at the gallery at the Songs, Scanlon told the couple that they “have showed more courage than I thought was possible in two people.” “To bury a child and then go out in public and try and change something, try to change our state. But today we are going to do something very special in his honor and your honor.”

Rep. Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, whose district includes Guilford, worked with Scanlon and the other shoreline legislators on the bill and has noted in the past that he was one who has not been a strong supporter of repealing gun owner rights.

But he said “Ethan’s Law” was an example “of the way we should do things in this chamber,” noting the bill came from dialogues between legislators of both parties not confrontation. Again, referring to the Songs, Candelora said: “I hope this bill will start the healing process for them.”