Ezechiel’s Law Signed: Landlords Must Install Window Guards

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD — Landlords and apartment building owners will now have to install window guards in apartments where children younger than 10 live.

The law applies to any multi-family building in Montgomery County. Landlords will also be required to install window guards for any tenant who requests it in writing.

Ezechiel’s Law was signed Tuesday morning — its namesake was two years old when he fell out of his apartment building window in Takoma Park and died.

There have been incidents of children falling out of windows in Gaithersburg and Takoma Park, County Council President Tom Hucker said at the law signing. Montgomery County estimates there are 5,000 to 6,00o children under 10 who live above the ground floor in an apartment building in the county.

"These injuries and deaths are easily preventable," Hucker said. "The county and our landlords have a fundamental responsibility to ensure our housing code makes children's safety a priority, and this bill will do just that."

The bill was passed unanimously by the County Council in April and will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2o22.

"When you know things are preventable, you have an obligation to do something about it," said County Executive Marc Elrich at the law signing.

Alvine Nguemezi, Ezechiel's mother, prepared a statement for the law signing, which her sister read. On the day Ezechiel fell, his mother was only steps behind him, she said, but he got into the window quickly and fell.

"Most children are energetic and constantly into things around their house," Nguemezi's sister read. "Ezechiel was no exception — he was small but extremely active and very smart."

Nguemezi is working with her lawyer to make Ezechiel's Law go statewide, she said. She thanked the council for making the county a safer place for children.

"We had high hopes for Ezechiel," Nguemezi's sister read. "He had a brighter future ahead of him. I think of him every day and wonder why this happened."

View the council report for the bill here.