34 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • JUNE 2019
PRESS HEALTH
LI NATIVE AND DAD OF PARKLAND VICTIM FIGHTS FOR GUN SAFETY
Almost immediately following the
shooting, Mr. Guttenberg thrust
himself into a mission to improve gun
safety throughout the United States,
essentially becoming a voice for his
daughter and every other parent
who has lost a child to a senseless and
seemingly preventable tragedy.
In 2016, 38,658 persons died from
firearm-related injuries in the United
States, according to the U.S. Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC). Guns were used in 87 percent
of homicides involving youth.
LI is not immune. In 2018, more than
30 percent of violent crimes in Nassau
and Suffolk Counties combined
were related to firearms, according
to the New York State Division of
Criminal Justice Services.
“I want to do everything I can to lower
the gun violence death rates, so we
are stopping these things and saving
lives,” Guttenberg says. “I don’t get my
daughter back, but I need to be a part
of making sure that other parents
don’t go through what my family is
going through.”
Jaime was very close with her parents,
especially her mother. Their
family was very “tight.” Siblings Jesse
and Jaime “laughed a lot,” Guttenberg
recalls.
“The hardest part is not hearing them
laugh in the back seat,” he says.
Jaime also had big plans.
“She was going to be a pediatric physical
therapist,” he says. “Her dream
was to help a kid walk for the first
time. She was just an unbelievable kid
and there isn’t a second I don’t think
about her and miss her.”
Advocating for gun safety has become
a priority for Guttenberg and
a way to work through his grief. Just
days following his daughter’s death,
Guttenberg faced U.S. Sen. March
Rubio (R-Florida) at a CNN Town Hall
meeting on February 21.
“Unfortunately, there has been way
too much gun violence in this country,”
Guttenberg asserts. “I always
felt the reaction was way too polite,
way too comfortable, and way too
temporary.”
After his daughter’s passing, Guttenberg
established two organizations:
Orange Ribbons (www.orangeribbonsforjaime.
org), a nonprofit foundation
aimed to honor his daughter
and all her life’s passions, including
anti-bullying programs and the Humane
Society; and Orange Ribbons For
Gun Safety, a nonprofit that advocates
for gun safety reforms and candidates
who will pursue gun safety.
Guttenberg was instrumental in introducing
Jaime’s Law, to the House
and Senate.
“We have to deal with a dysfunctional
and broken background check system,”
he says.
The law would require universal
background checks on the sale of
ammunition. Restricting the age to
purchase weapons or ammunition
to individuals ages 21 and older is
critical, Guttenberg says.
“We don’t let these kids drink until
they are 21,” he says. “We shouldn’t
let them buy weapons.”
Enforce red flag laws, Guttenberg
says.
“Give law enforcement the ability
to remove weapons from those that
are a known threat to themselves or
someone else—or a certified domestic
abuser, because they have already
shown they are violent,” he says.
And finally, “we need to allow for the
CDC to do funding and a study of gun
violence,” Guttenberg says. “We need
to limit magazine capacity.”
None of the above proposals violate
the second amendment, Guttenberg
notes.
“It’s all about lowering the gun
violence death rate, which is about
40,000 per year,” he says. “This is my
life mission.”
I AM UNIQUE.
I HAVE UNIQUE
NEEDS.
-Adolescent Gyn
-Nutrition
-Skin
-Mental health
-Working Papers
-Well visits
Dr. MARIGOLD CASTILLO, M.D.
ADOLESCENT MEDICINE
42-05 Francis Lewis Boulevard, Bayside, NY 11361
718.MD1.CARE www.MD1CARE.nyc
continued from page 33
/www.MD1CARE.nyc
/www.orangerib-bonsforjaime.org
/www.orangerib-bonsforjaime.org
/www.orangerib-bonsforjaime.org
/LONGISLANDPRESS.COM
/718.MD1.CA
/www.MD1CARE.nyc
