Newtown group to launch anti-violence initiative
| NEWTOWN, Conn.
A group in Newtown, Conn., plans to announce an initiative Monday aimed at preventing violent tragedies like last month's school shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Sandy Hook Promise, formerly known as Newtown United, said it invited victims' families to the announcement, which comes exactly one month after the Dec. 14 massacre.
Co-founder Tim Makris has said the group does not represent or speak for the families and that he's not sure how many families might participate in the initiative.
Adam Lanza, 20, shot his way into Sandy Hook Elementary School on Dec. 14 and killed 20 first-graders and six women before committing suicide as police arrived. He also killed his mother at their Newtown home before driving to the school and carrying out the massacre.
The killings have sparked debates about gun control and violence prevention across the country. Vice President Joe Biden has been leading a national task force on gun violence and was expected to submit the panel's recommendations to President Barack Obama on Tuesday.
Many are calling for the federal government to reinstate a ban on assault weapons and to ban high-capacity ammunition magazines.
On Sunday, the family of Noah Pozner, one of the children killed at the school, sent a list of its proposals to the national task force. They include requiring gun owners to lock up their weapons in their homes if the guns could be accessed by mentally ill or dangerous people, and boosting federal grants for school security reviews.
Pozner's family also is suggesting a new law requiring people to notify police within 24 hours if they know about an imminent threat of harm or death made by a person who has access to guns or explosive devices. Breaking the law would be a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has created an advisory commission that will review and recommend changes to state laws and policies on gun control, school safety measures and mental health services in the wake of the Sandy Hook rampage.
