Newtown High School is an accredited public high school in Newtown, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2018–2019 school year, the school serves 1,571 students in grades 9–12 and employs 141 faculty members. It is the only high school of the Newtown Public Schools.
Newtown is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. It is part of the Greater Danbury metropolitan area as well as the New York metropolitan area. Newtown was founded in 1705, and later incorporated in 1711. As of the 2020 census, its population was 27,173. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region.
Sandy Hook is a village in the town of Newtown, Connecticut, founded in 1711. It was listed as a census-designated place prior to the 2020 census. According to the United States Census Bureau in 2021, it has a population of 9,114.
Susan Jo Candiotti is an American journalist currently working as a national correspondent for CNN.
St. Rose of Lima Church is a Roman Catholic parish church at 46 Church Hill Road in Newtown, Connecticut, United States. It is under the authority of the Diocese of Bridgeport, and was founded under the patronage of St. Rose of Lima, the first person born in the Americas to be canonized by the Catholic Church.
Crime rates in Connecticut are lower than in the United States as a whole and have fallen significantly over the past decade, according to the 2021 Crime in Connecticut Report. This pattern holds true overall, and for most types of crime.
On December 14, 2012, a mass shooting occurred at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, United States. The perpetrator, 20-year-old Adam Lanza, shot and killed 26 people. 20 of the victims were children between six and seven years old, and the other six were adult staff members. Earlier that day, before driving to the school, Lanza fatally shot his mother at their Newtown home. As first responders arrived at the school, Lanza killed himself with a gunshot to the head.
Newtown Public Schools is a school district in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. As of 2013 it contained seven schools, with a total enrollment of 5298, an increase of 1663 since 1994. It comprises 2.64% of Fairfield County. Teachers in the school district are paid more than average for the area, which has in the past led to complaints from neighboring districts of staff being poached from them.
The December 14, 2012, Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting—in which a gunman shot and killed his mother at home, 20 students, 6 teachers, then himself—received international attention. Governments and world leaders offered their condolences, while tributes and vigils by people were made in honor of the victims. U.S. President Barack Obama gave a televised address on the day of the shootings, saying, "We're going to have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this, regardless of the politics." Obama paused twice during the address to compose himself and wipe away tears, and expressed "enormous sympathy for families that are affected". He also ordered flags to be flown at half-staff at the White House and other U.S. federal government facilities worldwide in respect for the victims. Three days after the massacre, 151,000 Americans had signed up at the Obama administration's We the People petitioning website in support of a renewed national debate on gun control. Obama attended and spoke at an interfaith vigil on December 16 in Newtown, Connecticut.
Victoria Leigh Soto was an American teacher who was killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. After the gunman, Adam Lanza, entered the school, she hid her students in her classroom. When Lanza entered Soto’s classroom, Soto claimed that the students were in the gym room. Lanza then shot Soto, causing the students to run from their hiding places. She was reportedly shot four times by Lanza and died trying to shield them with her body. She has since been hailed as a hero. She is a posthumous recipient of the Presidential Citizens Medal.
The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting occurred on December 14, 2012, in Newtown, Connecticut. The perpetrator, Adam Lanza, fatally shot his mother before murdering 20 students and six staff members at Sandy Hook Elementary School, and later committed suicide. A number of fringe figures have promoted conspiracy theories that doubt or dispute what occurred at Sandy Hook. Various conspiracy theorists have claimed, for example, that the massacre was actually orchestrated by the U.S. government as part of an elaborate plot to promote stricter gun control laws.
An Act Concerning Gun Violence Prevention and Children's Safety, also known as Public Law 13-3 or Connecticut Senate Bill No. 1160, is a bill concerning gun laws in Connecticut. The legislation was introduced by Senator Donald Williams in the state senate and by House Speaker Brendan Sharkey in the state House of Representatives. It was cosponsored by Rep. Ezequiel Santiago, Rep. Matthew Ritter, Rep. Matthew Lesser, Rep. Larry B. Butler, Rep. Auden Grogins, Rep. Patricia A. Dillon, Rep. Catherine F. Abercrombie, and Senator Andres Ayala. The bi-partisan bill passed the Senate by a vote of 26 to 10 and the House of Representatives by a vote of 105-44 on April 3, 2013.
The Assault Weapons Ban of 2013 was a bill introduced in the 113th United States Congress as S. 150 by Senator Dianne Feinstein, D-CA, on January 24, 2013, one month after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. It was defeated in the Senate on April 17, 2013 by a vote of 40 to 60.
A crisis actor is a trained actor, role player, volunteer, or other person engaged to portray a disaster victim during emergency drills to train first responders such as police, firefighters or EMS personnel. Crisis actors are used to create high-fidelity simulations of disasters in order to allow first responders to practice their skills and help emergency services to prepare and train in realistic scenarios as part of full-scale disaster exercises. The term has also been used by conspiracy theorists who claim that some mass shootings and other terror events are staged for the advancement of various political objectives.
Mary Hollis Inboden is an American actress and writer best known for appearing on the TV shows The Real O'Neals, Kevin Can F**k Himself, and The Righteous Gemstones.
The Columbine Memorial is a memorial in Columbine, Colorado, that honors the deceased and injured victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were affected by the Columbine High School massacre on April 20, 1999. The memorial is located in Clement Park, which is behind Columbine High School, the site of the massacre. It is operated by a non-profit institution whose mission is to operate the memorial and its upkeeping.
HONR Network is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that was founded in 2014 by Lenny Pozner, the father of a six-year-old victim of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, in order to "bring awareness to hoaxer activity" and "prosecute those who wittingly and publicly defame, harass and emotionally abuse the victims of high-profile tragedies". Its efforts have led to significant policy changes at Facebook, WordPress, YouTube and other major online platforms to protect victims of harassment.
Joseph Theodore Lewis is an American school safety advocate. Lewis started Newtown Helps Rwanda, a charity that raised money for survivors of the 1994 Rwandan genocide as well as former child soldiers in Uganda. He previously was a candidate in the 2020 elections for Connecticut state senator for the 28th district, dropping out before the August primaries to work on a national campaign. He is the older brother of first grade student Jesse Lewis, a victim of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.
Scarlett Lewis is an American activist, educator, and author who founded the non-profit Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement after her son Jesse was murdered during the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
The Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in the United States that provides free Character Social Emotional Development (CSED) programs. Choose Love programming is being taught in over 10,000 schools, in all 50 states and over 120 countries, serving over 3 million children globally. This is the only organization that offers free lifespan Character Social Emotional Development programming, with consistent messaging for parents and caregivers as well as for communities and businesses.
Engravings of the victims' names
New Sandy Hook school
Sycamore tree in the basin
Path leading to the basin
Visitor plaque near the entrance
