An Evanston mother arrived in Washington D.C. tonight for the President’s State of the Union address.

Carolyn Murray lost her 19-year-old son in November but was a gun control advocate long before that.

Justin was the unintended target of a shooting just steps from his grandmother’s home in Evanston.  His shooter has never been found.

He often helped Murray organize events and a gun buyback program to tackle gun violence in their community.

Murray is hoping his story will inspire legislators to act on a gun control bill.  The mother of three says she understands people’s need to protect themselves but thinks there is also a need to control illegal guns on the streets.

She is one of a handful of Chicago parents, who lost children to gun violence, in D.C for the State of the Union address tomorrow.