Gov. Lamont Coming To Guilford Green To Sign “Ethan’s Law”

GUILFORD, CT - Gov. Ned Lamont is coming to Guilford next week to sign a safe storage gun bill named after the late Ethan Song into law.

At 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 13th, Lamont will be on the Guilford Green, along with Mike and Kristin Song, to sign the bill that passed with wide bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate.

The fact that the bill signing will be on the Guilford Green makes it even more significant, to the Songs.

“For me the location is very meaningful because this is where Ethan played with his friends on the Green,” said Mike Song.

“We were in most of those shops including the Purple Bear toy shop when he was little and we went to the Little Folks Fair on the Green.

“We went to church at the First Congregational,” continued Mike Song, “and I took him into Page’s. We watched Nick Fradiani on the Green.

“So looking out as the governor signs— will be deeply moving,” Mike Song said.

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 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 have become nationally known advocates for stronger gun storage laws since their son's death.

Part of the language bill calls, but does not mandate, state education officials to provide guidance to local school districts to developing firearm safety programs in schools.

The Songs recently week made a return trip to Washington, D.C. where Connecticut Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro introduced federal legislation modeled after Connecticut's "Ethan's Law" bill.

The Songs met Republicans on Capitol Hill to discuss Ethan's Law. So far, only Democrats are backing the proposal which is not supported by the National Rifle Association.

DeLauro anticipates there will be bipartisan support for Ethan's Law because everyone agrees that protecting children is fundamental.

"We are eager and optimistic to see that this law will be passed quickly because nothing is more important than our children's lives," she said.

She and U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, who is introducing a Senate version of Ethan's Law, said the federal bill would include fines for unsafe storage of guns and possible jail time and exposure to civil liabilities if the improperly stored weapon results in injury or death. Their bill would also provide law enforcement grants to states to implement similar laws on the state level.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2017, at least 2,696 children and adolescents were unintentionally shot after a gun was improperly stored; more than 100 were killed. Another 1,110 children their own lives, many with unsecured firearms.

The Harvard School of Public Health found that adolescents who die by suicide are twice as likely to have access to a gun at home than those who survive suicide attempts.