Connecticut school district on lockdown after shooting report at a Newtown elemen #11

[Darkman00]

Courant/FRONTLINE Investigation: Raising Adam Lanza

Who Was Adam Lanza, And What Was The Nature Of His Relationship With His Mother?

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By ALAINE GRIFFIN, agriffin@courant.com and JOSH KOVNER, jkovner@courant.comThe Hartford Courant
5:00 a.m. EST, February 15, 2013

Shortly after her move from New Hampshire to Newtown in 1998, Nancy Lanza had good news about her troubled son.

"Adam is doing well here, and seems to be enjoying the new school," Lanza wrote to a friend back in Kingston, N.H. in a Feb. 9, 1999 email.

But Adam, 6, then diagnosed with a condition that left him vulnerable to sensory overload, eventually struggled in the classroom at his new school – Sandy Hook Elementary.

Read the rest of The Hartford Courant’s examination of the life of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooter Adam Lanza and his mother, Nancy, in Sunday’s Courant.

The two-part episode of FRONTLINE’s Raising Adam Lanza and Newtown Divided premieres Tuesday, Feb, 19, at 10 p.m. on PBS.

Source: http://www.courant.com/news/connect...hc-raising-adam-lanza-20130214,0,661289.story

 

[Darkman00]

'Raising Adam Lanza' and PBS' week on Newtown

3:44 PM By Verne Gay

PBS will devote a considerable amount of airtime next week to the horrific shootings in Newton, Conn., last December, and I've just seen one of the most highly anticipated programs in the lineup, "Raising Adam Lanza," about the 20-year-old killer who took a Bushmaster rifle to Sandy Hook Elementary School and slaughtered 20 first-graders and six adults. (Go here to find out more about the weeklong series, "After Newtown," which begins Monday.)

Read more: http://www.newsday.com/entertainmen...-adam-lanza-and-pbs-week-on-newtown-1.4655460

 

[Darkman00]

Ohioan drops suit over court fine sent to Newtown

February 16, 2013

Associated Press

CANTON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio taxpayer is dismissing his lawsuit over a $5,000 court fine that a judge directed to the Connecticut community where 26 people were killed in a school shooting.

The taxpayer's attorney says he dismissed the suit Friday after the judge had the money returned to Stark County in northeast Ohio.

Read more: http://www.hsconnect.com/page/conte...rt-fine-sent-to-Newtown-.html?isap=1&nav=5028

 

[Darkman00]

MSNBC Host: If Newtown Massacre Happened at a Black School, We Wouldn’t Be Having ‘National Conversation About Guns’

Feb. 15, 2013 9:00pm | Jason Howerton

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Attacking the National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre as a racist, MSNBC co-host Touré — no last name, just Touré — said the NRA chief’s rhetoric is full of racial undertones and argued that there would be no “national conversation” about guns if Newtown shooter had shot up a black school.

During his “Touré TV” editorial segment on “The Cycle” Friday, Toure observed that gun violence disproportionately affects minority community, especially blacks. He pointed out that there is strong support in the black community for gun control.

“Perhaps we know Wayne LaPierre is wrong about good guys, and bad guys, and guns…I’m sure many of us find him hard to trust given his obvious use of racial demonization to spread fear that will lead to buying guns,” he said.

Read more: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/201...t-be-having-national-conversation-about-guns/

 

[Darkman00]

In Newtown shooting’s wake, schools are scrambling to step up security

By Rebecca Lurye | McClatchy Newspapers | Published: Friday, Feb. 15, 2013 - 10:45 am

WASHINGTON -- At Park Hill High School in Kansas City, Mo., some of the most heightened security measures in the area didn’t prevent a student from bringing a .22-caliber handgun to school last month.

The school recently added more security cameras, guards and locks on all external doors. The Park Hill School District already had required middle and high school students to wear identification badges around their necks for the past few years.

They’re not just an adornment. In some of the middle schools, students with a temporary badge are escorted from class to class; in the high schools, they take their lunch in detention.

Yet on Jan. 31, a sophomore was arrested at the end of the school day after another student tipped off administrators that he’d been carrying a loaded weapon.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/02/15/5193785/in-newtown-shootings-wake-schools.html

 

[Darkman00]

February 15, 2013 7:20 PM

Husband of Newtown victim remembers wife as hero

By Steve Hartman

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CBS News) NEWTOWN, Conn. -- After 31 years of marriage, Bill Sherlach says he and his wife had fallen into a routine -- every morning pretty much the same.

However, for whatever reason, on the morning of December 14, Bill did something different.

"She was coming across the kitchen floor, and I grab her and I give her a big hug and we had a big kiss," he says. "Now most mornings, it's grab the coffee, out the door, what's on the schedule. Not that morning. Not that morning."

It's the only consolation in what has been an otherwise inconsolable new year.

"There's just a huge part that's gone," Bill says.

Later that day, 56-year-old school psychologist Mary Sherlach became one of the six adult victims of the Sandy Hook shooting.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57569719/husband-of-newtown-victim-remembers-wife-as-hero/

 

[Darkman00]

Playgrounds to honor Newtown massacre victims being built in communities recovering from Hurricane Sandy

Firefighters building playgrounds to honour Newtown victims in towns hit by Superstorm Sandy

From ASSOCIATED PRESS

Last Updated: 12:47 PM, February 16, 2013
Posted: 12:46 PM, February 16, 2013

TRENTON, NJ — The state's largest firefighter union is remembering the 26 victims of December's Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting massacre in Connecticut by building a playground to honor each one in a community recovering from Superstorm Sandy.

New Jersey and New York will get 10 playgrounds each, and Connecticut will get six. Each playground will link the two tragedies with the shared name Sandy to create memorials for recovery and hope.

Read more:

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/playgrounds_recovering_honor_newtown_ZGU0T8kcyiKo7rNT5V7ZtM

or:

http://www.theprovince.com/news/Fir...nour+Newtown+victims+towns/7976361/story.html

 

[Darkman00]

Boston Bruins to visit Newtown

Posted: Feb 16, 2013 1:15 PM CST
Updated: Feb 16, 2013 1:16 PM CST

NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) - The Boston Bruins plan to become the latest ambassadors from the world of sports to visit Newtown in the wake of December's massacre at the Sandy Hook Elementary school.

The Bruins have scheduled a series of events in town Monday, including a street-hockey clinic, a clinic with the high school's hockey team, an autograph session with children and a meeting with first responders, who will be given autographed and framed jerseys.

Read more: http://www.myfoxboston.com/story/21224266/2013/02/16/boston-bruins-to-visit-newtown

 

[Darkman00]

Newtown residents opening non-profit Sandy Hook Arcade Center

By Aaron Souppourison, February 16, 2013 12:55 pm

Arcades may be disappearing across the country, but In the aftermath of last December's horrific events at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown residents have come together in support of a new arcade for the community. It's hoped that the arcade will help the town heal; co-founders and longtime Newtown residents Andrew Clure and Scott Cicciari tell Polygon they set up the center to "promote one of the core values in Newtown — family."

The Sandy Hook Arcade Center will feature video games alongside traditional favorites like pinball and air hockey...

Read more: http://www.theverge.com/2013/2/16/3...ok-arcade-center-opens-to-help-heal-community

 

[Darkman00]

Psychologist: Hard to identify mass murderers beforehand

Ken Dixon, Updated 11:41 pm, Wednesday, February 13, 2013

HARTFORD -- It's almost impossible to identify potential mass murderers such as Adam Lanza before they fulfill their violent fantasies.

That's the opinion of a forensic psychologist who Wednesday told state lawmakers planning the legislative reaction to the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre that they should consider replacing hollow-core classroom doors with solid wood and bulletproof glass.

And for as little as $50 a year, anonymous tip lines can be made available with the information reviewed by risk assessment teams.

S. David Bernstein, a Norwalk-based psychologist, said 95 percent of school shooters attend the facilities they attack and 75 percent hold longtime grudges for having been bullied.

Bernstein, who has investigated many gruesome murders in academic settings, called the Sandy Hook attack an example of "the Black Swan" effect, a rare mass murder. The average school crime falls far short of that.

"It's impossible to predict," Bernstein told a subcommittee on school safety. "It is very possible to prepare for, and that's the best we can hope."

Read more: http://www.ctpost.com/local/article/Psychologist-Hard-to-identify-mass-murderers-4276498.php

 

[Darkman00]

My Voice: Stop ignoring mental health

Feb 11, 2013 | Written by Evelyn M. Leite

An open letter to legislators:

The shootings in schools across this country are a national tragedy of senseless, irrational, madness. Please consider that all the perpetrators were lonely, desperate and despairing young people. For one reason or another, these children did not fit into the mainstream of society. I beg you to consider that what you need to be arming schools with is better informed staff, teachers and security guards who understand the art of negotiation, and additional counselors.

A check with the South Dakota Department of Education reveals that we have 293.6 school counselors in our state. Based on 2012 data, we also have 127,769 students. On average, we have 432 students per counselor. A school counselor’s career is one of high stress and little financial reward...

...

Lanza, Kip Kinkel and Seung-Hui Cho sent out obvious signals about their intent and no one listened. This is not the fault of guns. It is the fault of overworked, underpaid people who have an obligation to notice and intervene instead of denying and overlooking obviously needy people.

Read more: http://www.argusleader.com/article/...02120011/My-Voice-Stop-ignoring-mental-health

 

[i.b.nora]

Courant/FRONTLINE Investigation: Raising Adam Lanza

Who Was Adam Lanza, And What Was The Nature Of His Relationship With His Mother?

---- TEXT & VIDEO ----

By ALAINE GRIFFIN, agriffin@courant.com and JOSH KOVNER, jkovner@courant.comThe Hartford Courant
5:00 a.m. EST, February 15, 2013

Shortly after her move from New Hampshire to Newtown in 1998, Nancy Lanza had good news about her troubled son.

"Adam is doing well here, and seems to be enjoying the new school," Lanza wrote to a friend back in Kingston, N.H. in a Feb. 9, 1999 email.

But Adam, 6, then diagnosed with a condition that left him vulnerable to sensory overload, eventually struggled in the classroom at his new school – Sandy Hook Elementary.

Read the rest of The Hartford Courant’s examination of the life of Sandy Hook Elementary School shooter Adam Lanza and his mother, Nancy, in Sunday’s Courant.

The two-part episode of FRONTLINE’s Raising Adam Lanza and Newtown Divided premieres Tuesday, Feb, 19, at 10 p.m. on PBS.

Source: http://www.courant.com/news/connect...hc-raising-adam-lanza-20130214,0,661289.story

This is a particularly good article, imo. Previously unknown biographical information regarding both Nancy and to a lesser extent Peter. Also, more on Adam. I look forward to the Frontline showing.

This whole thing is just so tragic and so encompassing of a variety of issues that affect almost everyone. It is as though it was meant to happen, or that it happened for a reason. There is something to this one that is different from all others. We need as a nation to learn from this event. If we don't it will just repeat itself until we do.

All just my opinion.

 

[Darkman00]

This is a particularly good article, imo. Previously unknown biographical information regarding both Nancy and to a lesser extent Peter. Also, more on Adam. I look forward to the Frontline showing.

This whole thing is just so tragic and so encompassing of a variety of issues that affect almost everyone. It is as though it was meant to happen, or that it happened for a reason. There is something to this one that is different from all others. We need as a nation to learn from this event. If we don't it will just repeat itself until we do.

All just my opinion.

Yes ... Very good article!

As promised they posted in on Sunday, which is today...

That article could be read all in one page there .... HERE:

http://www.courant.com/news/connect...sing-adam-lanza-20130217,0,5614292,full.story

They even have a photo there of "Adam Lanza, second row, second from left, is pictured with his first grade class at Sandy Hook Elementary School from the 1998-1999 school year."

 

[Darkman00]

But Adam, 6, then diagnosed with a condition that made it difficult for him to manage and respond to sights, touch and smell, eventually struggled in the first grade at his new school — Sandy Hook Elementary.

His mother would respond, touching off a 10-year educational shuffle with moves in and out of schools and programs that addressed his sensory integration disorder and another diagnosis that would come by middle school: Asperger's syndrome.

Adam would attend public school, take lessons at home, try private school for a couple of months, return to public school and attend Newtown High School, although he left after his sophomore year. He went to college at 16 and earned A's and B's — but it didn't last. He was out in a year. He then went to a community college, and dropped out in the first semester.

A series of significant life changes followed for Adam as the number of people with whom he had contact began to shrink.

His parents divorced. He abruptly cut off contact with his father, Peter, in 2010, and grew estranged from his older brother...

The newlyweds built their own home on the family's Kingston farmland. While Peter went to college to become an accountant, Nancy was the breadwinner, working in the new accounts division of John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co. in Boston's financial district, an hour's drive away.

Nancy Lanza would later tell a New Hampshire law enforcement official, who spoke to The Courant on the condition of anonymity, that in the early 1980s she had been assaulted on the Boston Common, a daytime attack in front of onlookers.

The official said that some time later, Nancy went to the Kingston Police Department to notify them that she was afraid her attacker would victimize her at her home. The law enforcement official could not recall the name of the assailant and The Courant and "Frontline" were not able to locate court records related to the case.

Source: http://www.courant.com/news/connect...sing-adam-lanza-20130217,0,5614292,full.story

 

[Darkman00]

Novia said he was also surprised that Nancy exposed her son to firearms.

"It's a serious mistake, first of all," he said. "If you have a child in the home with mental disorders, or learning disabilities, to have involved him with guns in the first place would be bad."

Novia owns several firearms and has taught shooting classes, and he carries a concealed pistol at certain times. He said that even shooting with Adam in the controlled environment of a shooting range was a mistake for his mother, given Adam's psychological conditions.

"For healthy people, this is a perfectly fun activity," Novia said of activities at the range.

He said the guns and the violent video games Adam played may well have been an unhealthful combination for a troubled boy.

Source: http://www.courant.com/news/connect...sing-adam-lanza-20130217,0,5614292,full.story

 

[Darkman00]

Revealed: Police believe Adam Lanza copied scene from violent video game to carry out Sandy Hook killing spree and how he 'bonded' with mother at gun range

Adam Lanza killed 27 people on December 14, including 20 school children and his own mother

Police probing whether he may have been a copying video game as he went room-to-room firing a Bushmaster assault rifle at the school

He smashed his hard drive before the massacre, making his online trail and habits impossible to follow

By Thomas Durante, Jonathan Wynne-jones and Daniel Bates

PUBLISHED:15:18 GMT, 17 February 2013| UPDATED: 17:01 GMT, 17 February 2013

Police investigating the Newtown school killings have been looking into the possibility that gunman Adam Lanza may have been copying a video game as killed 26 people in the massacre.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-copied-scene-tactics-violent-video-game.html
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

 

[Darkman00]

'Raising Adam Lanza' review: Revealing

David Wiegand

Published 5:29 pm, Sunday, February 17, 2013

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/tv/article/Raising-Adam-Lanza-review-Revealing-4286333.php

 

[Darkman00]

Detectives investigating Newtown massacre find Adam Lanza's violent video games, ponder the 20-year-old mimicking a gory game scene

Thousands of dollars worth of games were found in the home of Lanza, who used assault weapons to gun down 20 children and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

By Adam Edelman / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

Sunday, February 17, 2013, 9:41 PM.

Adam Lanza as a child.


Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nat...ide-motive-newtown-massacre-article-1.1266643​

 

[Darkman00]

Investigators recover Lanza computer data

John Pirro | Michael P. Mayko | Ken Dixon | Published 10:23 pm, Saturday, February 16, 2013

NEWTOWN -- Investigators have succeeded in recovering some data from one of the damaged hard drives in a computer used by Adam Lanza and have subpoenaed computers of people they believe were in contact with the Sandy Hook mass murderer, a law enforcement source said Friday.

Another smashed hard drive still is being reconstructed by technicians with the U.S. Department of Defense, the source said.

Authorities are particularly interested in what relationships Lanza had within the online and video game communities, hoping there may be clues about what provoked him to shoot his mother to death and then kill 20 first-graders and six educators at the Sandy Hook Elementary School on the morning of Dec. 14.

Earlier in their investigation, State Police had found a trove of violent gaming material at the Newtown home Lanza shared with his mother, Nancy.

Lanza attempted to destroy the computer hard drives either on the day of the shootings or shortly earlier.

Investigators also have concluded that Adam Lanza's mother did not restrict his access to the Bushmaster rifle and three other guns he took to Sandy Hook school to embark on his killing spree, according to another law enforcement source familiar with the investigation.

Nancy Lanza "had the means to secure the weapons" inside the Yogananda Street home she shared with her 20-year-old son, but the security measures she employed didn't include keeping them away from Adam, the source said...

Read more: http://www.greenwichtime.com/newtow...ators-recover-Lanza-computer-data-4285204.php

 

[Darkman00]

Report: Adam Lanza remains something of a mystery

Published: Saturday, February 16, 2013 | By Joe Amarante | jamarante@ctcentral.com / Twitter: @joeammo

A preview of the first half of Tuesday’s “Frontline”/Hartford Courant report on Newtown shooter Adam Lanza reinforces the notion that this shadowy young man left almost no digital footprint and few personal connections either.

Three former Register reporters now with the Hartford Courant make their national TV bow at 10 Tuesday night in a “Frontline” report on the Newtown slayings, part of a weeklong “After Newtown” series on PBS starting Monday.

Alaine Griffin, Josh Kovner and (to a lesser extent) investigations editor John Ferraro are seen trying to piece together a psychological profile of the Sandy Hook gunman in the “Frontline” two-part episode “Raising Adam Lanza.” The second part of the hour is “Newtown Divided,” about President Obama’s actions regarding gun policy since Sandy Hook, according to a release.

Based on a screening of the first segment, the quest for answers about Adam Lanza will not end here. As is expressed at the start of the program, it’s amazing in this age when so many young people text and Facebook details of so much of their lives, that the Newtown shooter’s legacy is just mystery and tragedy. And Nancy Lanza wasn’t exactly an open book either.

There are some emails and Facebook exchanges by Nancy Lanza but there is no “ah-ha!” moment in this collaboration between the Courant and TV’s venerable documentary show “Frontline.” There is no solid indication why this Newtown son on the autism spectrum, who feared crowds and chaos, would kill his mother and then use his mother’s guns to slaughter innocent children and school employees.

Read more: http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2013/02/16/news/doc512040900608b052901591.txt?viewmode=fullstory