TRAGEDY

Newtown Dad: Pass Weapons Ban

“I have to go home every night to an empty house without my son.”

Neil Heslin, whose 6-year-old son, Jesse, died in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, emotionally asked a Senate committee to pass the proposed assault-weapons ban during a hearing Wednesday on Capitol Hill. “Jesse was the love of my life,” said Heslin, who is separated from his wife. “It’s hard for me to be here today to talk about my deceased son. I have to. I’m his voice.” Heslin’s son was one of 20 children killed at the elementary school December 14, along with six adults; the shooter, Adam Lanza; and his mother. In the wake of the shooting, the White House and key Democrats have proposed reinstating the assault-weapons ban, but it faces stiff opposition in Congress from those opposed to gun control.