Distraught Father Calls On America TO BAN The Lethal Substance That Took His Son

Daily Report September 23,2024

A grieving father from Colorado is on a mission to ban a substance his son used to end his life, which he had bought online for just $13. Bruce Brown is pushing for nationwide restrictions on sodium nitrite, a chemical commonly used for food preservation, but lethal in high concentrations.

In November 2022, a package containing the odorless, yellowish-white powder arrived at the Brown household. Bruce, assuming it was a workout supplement for his athletic 17-year-old son, Bennett, didn’t think much of it. That evening, Bruce texted Bennett to ask about the package, but his son, who was staying elsewhere, never responded.

The next day, Bennett ingested the sodium nitrite. Shortly after, he realized the gravity of what he had done and reached out to his family, asking for immediate help. Tragically, Bennett died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital.

“My son did not want to die,” Bruce told USA Today. “After he took this poison, he went to a family member and said, ‘I need help.’ That’s really common for people who commit suicide.”

Bruce shared that Bennett had been suffering from long-term COVID, which left him with severe lung problems, keeping him housebound and impacting his mental health. A concussion after a fall further worsened his condition, forcing him to drop out of Arizona State University, where he had been an English major.

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“A symptom of concussion is suicide. I did not know that. Nobody ever told me that,” Bruce said. “I think that just exacerbated the pre-existing sadness that he was feeling.”

Bruce later discovered his son had been part of an online forum where users encourage each other to commit suicide, and it was likely where Bennett learned about sodium nitrite. The chemical causes methemoglobinemia, a condition where red blood cells can no longer carry oxygen to the body’s tissues. Even a small amount, between 0.7 and 6 grams, can be fatal, acting so fast that antidotes are often ineffective.

Sodium nitrite-related suicides have been rising in recent years. A CDC study from June reported at least 768 suicides involving sodium nitrite and other agents between 2018 and July 2023, with online forums playing a role in this increase.

“They shipped it in two days to him, and it sold for the price of about $13,” Bruce told USA Today. “That was the price of my son’s life.”

Driven by his son’s death, Bruce is advocating for stricter regulations on sodium nitrite. In July, he successfully championed a bill in Colorado limiting the sale of the compound in high concentrations and requiring clear labeling of its dangers and reversal methods. Colorado is now the third state to restrict the sale of sodium nitrite, following New York and California, which have implemented similar bans for younger buyers.

Bruce is also supporting the Youth Poisoning Protection Act, which aims to ban the sale of sodium nitrite in high concentrations across the country. His hope is to prevent other families from suffering the same immense grief.

“The grief is immense. It’s never-ending. There’s not an hour that goes by where my mind doesn’t go to Bennett,” Bruce said. “He was a great kid. He was funny. He was athletic when healthy. He was well-liked. The irony is he never would’ve hurt another person or animal, but yet he took his own life.”

The bill has already passed the US House of Representatives and is now awaiting approval in the Senate.