Newtown marks 6 months since school massacre

June 14, 2013 @ 1:05 pm


Carlee Soto, front, and Jillian Soto, sisters of slain teacher Victoria Soto, embrace during a ceremony on the six-month anniversary honoring the 20 children and six adults gunned down at Sandy Hook Elementary School on Dec. 14, 2012 in Newtown, Conn., Friday, June 14, 2013. Newtown held a moment of silence Friday for the victims of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School at a remembrance event that doubled as a call to action on gun control, with the reading of names of thousands of victims of gun violence. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill) | Zoom
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NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP) - The town where 20 children and six educators were massacred in December went silent for a moment Friday, six months later, at a remembrance event that doubled as a call to action on weapons control, with the reading of names of thousands of victims of gun violence.

The mood of the six-month marker was decidedly more political than private, with a group called Mayors Against Illegal Guns holding events in 10 states calling for lawmakers to expand background checks and urging senators who opposed the bill to reconsider.

Two sisters of slain teacher Victoria Soto addressed a crowd gathered at Edmond Town Hall in Newtown for a 26-second moment of silence, honoring the 20 children and six adults gunned down at the school on Dec. 14.

"This pain is excruciating and unbearable, but thanks to people like you, that come out and support us, we are able to get through this," said Carlee Soto, who hugged and held hands with her sister Jillian before taking the stage.

The event then transitioned to the reading of the names of more than 5,000 Americans killed with guns since the tragedy in Newtown. The reading of names was expected to take 12 hours.

Mayors Against Illegal Guns, which organized the event in Newtown, also launched a bus tour that will travel to 25 states over 100 days to build support for legislation to expand background checks for gun buyers. Such legislation failed in the Senate in April, and there are no indications it has gained traction over concerns about protecting gun rights.

The gunman in Newtown killed his mother and the 26 people at Sandy Hook Elementary School with a semiautomatic rifle, then committed suicide as police arrived. The shooting led some relatives of victims to campaign for tougher gun laws, including some who were in Washington this week lobbying lawmakers for action.

Jillian and Carlee Soto met with President Barack Obama as they campaigned for gun control.

"He just told us to have faith," said Jillian Soto, 24. "It isn't something that happens overnight. It's something that you have to continue to fight for. Within good time we will have this passed and we will have change."

Carlee Soto, who is 20, said they got back from Washington at 2 a.m. She said that the president and vice president spoke of waging a long battle and that she plans to continue her efforts, as well.

"It's a very tough battle to fight," she said. "It's very frustrating, but knowing I'm doing this for my sister and the other 25 and everyone else that's been affected by gun violence, it's worth it."

Teresa Rousseau, whose daughter Lauren was among the six educators killed at Sandy Hook, also met with the president this week. She said at first she wondered how she would survive, and now she knows she can and feels empowered as she campaigns for tougher gun laws.

"I think it's time the average American gets a little louder in what he has to say," Rousseau said.

Laura Miller was among many in the crowd wearing the school's green and white colors. She said that her son, a kindergartner, was unharmed but that his teacher was shot in the foot.

"I'm here for the people who were less fortunate than me," she said. "I think they're the bravest people in the world to be able to come out here and fight for change, and that's what we need to do. If more people come out, that's the only way anything is ever going to change."

The mayors group also held events in 10 states calling for lawmakers to expand background checks and urging senators who opposed the bill to reconsider. Those events, which include gun violence survivors and gun owners, were being in Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Montana, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

Suzanne Conway, 37, was among a handful of people who attended a rally in a Charlotte, N.C., park. The mother of four young children said the shooting compelled her to start a chapter of an anti-gun group, Moms Demand Action.

"Newtown hit me hard. I had to do something about it," she said. "People are not going to stop fighting. This is a very important issue."

In Indiana, about two dozen protesters gathered on the Monon Trail in Indianapolis and talked about pressing Indiana's congressional delegation to support background check legislation. Sen. Joe Donnelly, a Democrat, supports the checks, but Sen. Dan Coats, a Republican, does not.

The protest, held in a liberal swath of Republican Rep. Susan Brooks' district, should be about laying continued pressure on lawmakers, said Peter Luster, Indiana state director of Mayors Against Illegal Guns. Lawmakers have daily calls with their staff to check in on what constituents are talking about, and they should hear about background checks constantly, he said.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who co-founded the mayors group, this week sent a letter asking donors not to support Democratic senators who opposed the bill to expand background checks.

On the other side of the debate, the National Rifle Association is focusing on Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., who co-sponsored the bill to expand background checks, with a TV ad urging viewers to phone Manchin's office and tell him "to honor his commitment to the 2nd Amendment." The NRA plans to spend $100,000 airing the ad in West Virginia markets over the next two weeks.

___

Associated Press writers Mitch Weiss in North Carolina and Tom LoBianco in Indiana contributed to this report.


(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
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Comments (153)


  • Add A Comment

  • Ron_Spins wrote...
    Gun control debate
    December 16, 2012 4:33 pm
    http://mynorthwest.com/832/2151436/John-Curley-More-guns-would-deter-shootings
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Big Zipper wrote...
    Sadly NRA is loving this....
    December 16, 2012 5:46 pm
    Every time a mass shooting happens, gun control concerns pop up and the NRA donations go up.... it is odd.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Ron_Spins wrote...
    Sadly Gun sales have gone up ....Way up
    December 16, 2012 7:59 pm
    President Obama (the greatest gun salesman ever)is stoking fears along with his fellow Democrats.It isn't odd his Marxist tendencies are apparent.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • murr wrote...
    Ban any car that can go over 60 mph
    December 16, 2012 5:50 pm
    Those cars were only made to do something against the law. This is your left wing common sense. Yep has not one thing to do with the operator at all.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • murr wrote...
    Ban auto transportation.
    December 16, 2012 5:50 pm
    It will stop DUI's
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • murr wrote...
    WAmovesRight wrote...
    December 16, 2012 6:00 pm
    Thank you for posting what the left media will not. Honesty is called hate speach, by the leftist.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Newton wrote...
    Ban drugs it kills people.
    December 17, 2012 1:51 am
    Wait are goverment ships it in. Everbody knows Criminals wants an unarmed public citizen victims. So if you want gun control you are the criminal!.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • It's me! Ha ha! wrote...
    Sadly NRA is loving this....
    December 17, 2012 11:02 am
    Loving this? That is insane to make such a stupid post. No body is loving this.

    We are only attempting to protect our rights to keep and bear arms. The only ones "Loving" this here is all the Liberals and this regime who are using this, or any national tragedy an excuse to abolish the Second amendment.

    That Semi auto matic rifle did not kill any child. The insane evil person who's hands it was in used it to kill his prey was responcible.

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • It's me! Ha ha! wrote...
    The drug cartels have the resources to buy guns be it from the US government or Texas gun runners
    December 18, 2012 2:34 pm
    Texas Gun runners M-101? You must mean the Obama regime in trying to supply foreign drug cartels with American made guns to use in it's push for more Gun controls! How many people has this killed?

    Admit it Messiah, you and the rest of the Useful Idiots here and elsewhere were hoping for another slaughter of this nature so your beloved Dear Leader and his regime would have another crisis to go after the US Constitution and the Second Amendment!

    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Seattle School District Exposed wrote...
    As the Nation Reflects So Should We
    January 10, 2013 12:51 am
    We here at Seattle School District Exposed would like to take a moment to acknowledge resent events. The loss of 26 innocent people (20 children and 6 adults) at Sandy Hook Elementary has rocked us and the nation to the very core. Our deepest sympathy and condolences go out to the families of the victims and the families of children who's lives have been forever changed. It has been no secret that SSDE has felt the the Seattle School District has been failing to adequately provide security and protection to our children. In light of this recent tragedy we feel obligated to once again bring this matter to the forefront. After looking into the matter during the school board election we have found that while "Security Specialists" are assigned to High Schools and Middle Schools no Elementary School has been assigned one. The rationale behind not giving Elementary Schools "Security Specialists" is that there aren't enough "severe" incidents at Elementary Schools to need "Security Specialists". In short, employing a "Security Specialist" to stay at an Elementary School is not cost effective. A better business model being employing "Security Specialists" to mobile patrols that conduct checks and respond to Elementary Schools. The ideal situation would be that no school would ever need security. This however is sadly not the case. While the need for security has been reduced to triage, it has been applied wrongly in this situation. The school districts criteria for security has obviously been about severe instances among students. When one looks at the elementary level of "severe" instances one must look out side the student body for the threat, children are more vulnerable to adults than any preteen or teen. It is the violence of others that we must take into account. Every High School in the district has at least two security guards some three. Every middle school has one. But not one is assigned to an Elementary School. These "Mobile Security Specialists" are to make security checks and respond to "Severe" incidents at Elementary Schools. The thought that they respond to trouble is somewhat comforting, but that they would have a response time like the police is not. This is something that we feel needs to be addressed. This is not meant to be confrontational or political, now is not the time for hyperbole. We as a community, and as a city, have to look at these children and ask ourselves if our pride is worth more to us than protecting our children. Let us know what you think. Let us know what you think. Email us at NICKESPARZA@seattleschooldistrictexposed.com http://seattleschooldistrictexposed.blogspot.com/
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Seattle School District Exposed wrote...
    As the Nation Reflects So Should We
    January 10, 2013 1:02 am
    We here at Seattle School District Exposed would like to take a moment to acknowledge resent events. The loss of 26 innocent people (20 children and 6 adults) at Sandy Hook Elementary has rocked us and the nation to the very core. Our deepest sympathy and condolences go out to the families of the victims and the families of children who's lives have been forever changed. It has been no secret that SSDE has felt the the Seattle School District has been failing to adequately provide security and protection to our children. In light of this recent tragedy we feel obligated to once again bring this matter to the forefront. After looking into the matter during the school board election we have found that while "Security Specialists" are assigned to High Schools and Middle Schools no Elementary School has been assigned one. The rationale behind not giving Elementary Schools "Security Specialists" is that there aren't enough "severe" incidents at Elementary Schools to need "Security Specialists". In short, employing a "Security Specialist" to stay at an Elementary School is not cost effective. A better business model being employing "Security Specialists" to mobile patrols that conduct checks and respond to Elementary Schools. The ideal situation would be that no school would ever need security. This however is sadly not the case. While the need for security has been reduced to triage, it has been applied wrongly in this situation. The school districts criteria for security has obviously been about severe instances among students. When one looks at the elementary level of "severe" instances one must look out side the student body for the threat, children are more vulnerable to adults than any preteen or teen. It is the violence of others that we must take into account. Every High School in the district has at least two security guards some three. Every middle school has one. But not one is assigned to an Elementary School. These "Mobile Security Specialists" are to make security checks and respond to "Severe" incidents at Elementary Schools. The thought that they respond to trouble is somewhat comforting, but that they would have a response time like the police is not. This is something that we feel needs to be addressed. This is not meant to be confrontational or political, now is not the time for hyperbole. We as a community, and as a city, have to look at these children and ask ourselves if our pride is worth more to us than protecting our children. Let us know what you think. Let us know what you think. Email us at NICKESPARZA@seattleschooldistrictexposed.com http://seattleschooldistrictexposed.blogspot.com/
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }