On National ASK Day, Senator Murray Urges Washington State Families to Take Action Now to Prevent Gun Violence by Promoting Safe Storage

Today, June 21^st, marks National Asking Saves Kids (ASK) Day, a day to promote safe storage of firearms 

Since the Columbine shooting in 1999, over 210,000 students in over 200 schools, including schools in WA, have experienced a shooting on campus 

Senator Murray has been a vocal advocate for common-sense gun reforms to keep students & communities safe nationwide   

In new letters to Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Health Secretary Alex Azar, Senator Murray urges Trump Administration officials to develop safe storage plans, promote responsible gun ownership, and prevent unauthorized firearm access by young people

Last year GAO released a report on gun storage in response to a 2015 request led by Senator Murray and others 

(Washington, D.C.)  – U. S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), top Democrat on the Senate health committee, today encouraged Washingtonians to implement proper gun storage safety practices in their homes as families, communities, and gun safety advocates observe National Asking Saves Kids (ASK) Day on Thursday, June 21. A nationwide day of recognition, National ASK Day promotes gun safety and reminds parents and caregivers to ask if there are unlocked guns in the homes where their children play. Senator Murray has long been a vocal proponent of efforts to promote gun safety, including encouraging families to implement proper gun storage measures in their homes, and has worked to strengthen efforts supporting critical research to prevent gun violence.

Coinciding with National ASK Day, today Senator Murray also sent letters to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos urging them to employ a prevention-focused approach to better protect young people from gun violence and requesting that each department develop a safe storage plan before the beginning of the 2018-2019 school year. Last week, Senator Murray sent a letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos condemning her inaction to address gun violence in our nation’s schools, and during a Senate committee hearing questioned her comments that the gun safety commission she was leading to respond to some of the most deadly school shootings in this country would not address the issue of guns.

(A PDF of the letter to Secretary Azar can be found HERE ? A PDF of the letter to Secretary DeVos can be found HERE)

BACKGROUND: Senator Murray has long been a staunch supporter of common-sense gun safety regulations to eradicate gun violence and keep students, families, and communities safe. In addition to supporting common-sense gun reform legislation, Senator Murray has led efforts to strengthen gun violence prevention research, pushing the Government Accountability Office to release a report in 2017 outlining research on the effectiveness of safe gun storage programs. The report underscored the importance of efforts to support gun storage, like King County’s Lok-It-Up program and Seattle Children’s Hospital’s efforts to distribute gun locks. Additionally, recognizing the month of June as National Gun Violence Awareness Month, on June 2 Senator Murray joined activists in Washington state and across the nation in observing National Gun Violence Awareness weekend, a campaign to increase public awareness of the dangers of gun violence, and how it can be prevented.