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Uncovering A Family Tragedy

Aired December 17, 2012 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: As you can imagine, a cloud of grief hangs over Newtown, Connecticut, today. The community begins the first of more than two dozen heart-wrenching good-byes. Funerals for two of the six-year-olds killed in the elementary school massacre are being held today.

I'm Suzanne Malveaux in Atlanta with NEWSROOM's special coverage as Newtown remembers.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST, "THE SITUATION ROOM": And I'm Wolf Blitzer, here in Newtown, Connecticut.

The funerals will continue for days as the 20 children, the six teachers are laid to rest. All this follows a very moving and emotional service last night.

It included a prayer sung by a rabbi, readings from the Bible and the Koran, prayers from Christian leaders and a promise from President Obama.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In the coming weeks, I'll use whatever power this office holds to engage my fellow citizens from law enforcement, to mental health professionals, to parents and educators in an effort aimed at preventing more tragedies like this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Tonight, the crowd at the prayer service gave a standing ovation to the first responders, those who answered the call at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

We want to update you on the investigation, as well the developments in the aftermath of the tragedy in Newtown. Here's what we know now.

Police say that two people shot and wounded in the rampage are recovering. Initial reports indicated only one person who was wounded had survived. Now, investigators continue piecing together exactly what happened. Now, they say they're not going to stop until they've interviewed every witness and analyzed every piece of evidence, including each round of ammunition.

Faculty members are meeting today. Schools in Newtown will reopen tomorrow. But the classes at Sandy Hook Elementary, they're going to be suspended until further notice. We are also expecting another briefing from Connecticut Police. It could start any minute now. We're going to be monitoring that. We're going to bring it to you live as soon as that starts as well.

BLITZER: Lieutenant Paul Vance, who's been briefing reporters, Suzanne, he'll be briefing, once again. They were just six years old. Their lives cut short by a horrific act of violence. Next hour, families face what seems unbearable as they say good-bye to two first graders killed in the shooting at the elementary school here in Newtown. Funerals are set to begin for Jack Pinto and Noah Pozner. Jack loved sports, baseball, wrestling, but football was his favorite. Noah loved playing with his siblings, especially his twin sister. Jack and Noah are two of the 20 children who died. At last night's prayer service, President Obama called out each one by name.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: Let the little children come to me, Jesus said, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven. Charlotte, Daniel, Olivia, Josephine, Ana, Dylan, Madeleine, Catherine, Chase, Jesse, James, Grace, Emilie, Jack, Noah, Caroline, Jessica, Benjamin, Avielle, Allison. God has called them all home. For those of us who remain, let us find the strength to carry on and make our country worthy of their memory.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And I certainly hope that we do just that. This is a tragedy beyond belief or understanding. People want to know how this could have happened. What could have driven a young man to kill his own mother and then gun down 20 young children and six adults? Inevitably (ph), there are questions that are raised about his own childhood, his family life. I want to bring in Deborah Feyerick. She is in Newtown.

And, Deb, we've been learning more things about the gunman in the days prior, Adam Lanza, and leading up to this massacre. What do we know about specifically some computers that were smashed, things that investigators are looking at to try to come up with some clues or some answers?

DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, it is so important for investigators to try to piece together everything that happened in the days leading up to the crime. What we do want to do is show you the home. This is where the tragedy took place. It is still considered a crime scene. You can see it's surrounded by crime tape. The investigators, the police, will hold on to this home until they've gone through it with a fine-tooth comb.

We do know that firearms were a large part of Nancy Lanza's life. She's described as a country girl, a gun enthusiast who really liked to shoot. We are told by the ATF -- the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms Bureau, they're the ones who handle the guns, the weapons, the firearms -- that, in fact, Adam Lanza and his mom did visit a gun range in the days leading up to the shooting. Now, again, she was a gun enthusiast. It appears she was teaching her son how to shoot. We don't know why. And that's one of the things that's under investigation.

But on Friday, her son got hold of at least three of those firearms. He killed her early in the morning before setting out and leaving this home to go on the rampage at the school. According to a report in "The Wall Street Journal," when he was a freshman at the local high school back in 2007, he was appointed a school psychologist, and they were very concerned not that he was a danger, but, in fact, that he was so vulnerable that he himself could become a target. So all of that is being investigated.

The computer, Suzanne, that you mentioned, that, too, there are reports that the hard drive was broken, that it was smashed. The question, did that happen before he snapped or was that something that he did once he determined that he was going to go on this shooting spree? So investigators really holding the information pretty close just so that they can piece it together and try to recreate the final moments leading up to this slaughter of innocence, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Deb, do we have any idea, any sense, again, of the shooter's mental state or what he was going through, or is there any more information regarding motive or his connection to the school?

FEYERICK: We do know that the detectives are questioning former doctors, former teachers, anybody who may have come into contact to him. What is so fascinating about this particular case, Suzanne, is that, you know, usually when this kind of tragedy happens, the motive of the gunman, it's able to be pieced together very, very quickly.

But in this case, it seems as if he was so removed from society in such a fundamental way that there's so little information that's coming out right now. And again, that is part of the puzzle. And that is one of the things investigators are looking to -- into is to whether he was so isolated and whether the reason for that was because he was on this dangerous path, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Deb, do we have any idea whether or not he had a connection to the school at all? There were conflicting reports about whether or not his mother ever taught there, and then that was dismissed. Do we know what the association was with the school? Had he been a student at that elementary school back a while?

FEYERICK: Yes. You know, we have been searching for that answer as to why he decided to pick that school. You know, it's really unclear. All I can tell you is, you know, this home that he moved into, he would have been about six or seven, the same age as the children that he went after in that elementary school. He was at a local high school here. There are reports that he went to a local college and took some courses there.

But as to why that school, no, it's not clear. And when you get inside the mind of somebody like him, he could have read a reference. He could have known somebody who went to that school. It's just so unclear right now. And that's what the detectives and all the police are trying to piece together.

MALVEAUX: And, Deb, finally, we understand that Adam Lanza's aunt, Marsha Lanza, told our affiliate WLS that Nancy Lanza, she owned her guns for self-defense, but she never felt threatened. Why did she even have this collection of guns, and do we know how accessible they were to her son?

FEYERICK: You know, there have been reports, and people who knew Nancy Lanza, that she simply sort of liked shooting. That she was a gun enthusiast. Sort of a country girl. You know, you drive out here and you really do feel like you're pretty much out in the country. So the reasons as to why she had such high-powered weapons, look, a lot of legitimate gun owners have that kind of weaponry. That's just what they do. That's what they have.

So whether she felt she was at risk from him, if she were, the question is, is would she have left those guns unlocked? Why weren't they locked up so that, in fact, if he was a danger, either to her or to someone else, why weren't those guns properly holstered, basically, properly locked up?

MALVEAUX: All right, Deb Feyerick, thank you so much. We appreciate it. Still a lot of unanswered questions.

Families are calling the teachers at that school, Sandy Hook Elementary School, heroes. You can imagine why. They protected their children from that massacre, from the gunman's assault. And our own Anderson Cooper, he actually got a chance to speak to one of those teachers, Janet Vollmer, about what it was actually like inside the classroom.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST, "AC360": Explain again, you heard -- you knew something was going wrong. How?

JANET VOLLMER, KINDERGARTEN TEACHER: Well, I mean, we were in our classroom. And we heard what sounded like gunshots, noises.

COOPER: Oh -- you heard that on the over --

VOLLMER: Well, there was a loudspeaker that was --

COOPER: The PA system.

VOLLMER: The PA system was not working the way it normally is because you don't usually hear things unless someone is making an announcement. So there were noises that didn't sound correct. So there was no -- anyone telling us that it was a drill. We just thought something was not right. So we took the children and we went into what we call a lockdown. And we go to a certain place in the room. We pull the blinds down. We lock the classroom doors. And we cover the window at the door and then --

COOPER: So this is something you had already -- you had practiced?

VOLLMER: Yes. About a month or so before, Dawn made sure that we do that and, you know, we'd go to a safe place. And typically when it's a drill they tell us, OK, and then we even exited the building following a certain path. And if there was an emergency, we'd go down to the Sandy Hook firehouse and gather there, which is what we did that day. So, you know, we knew that.

COOPER: But you sat the kids down --

VOLLMER: We sat in the cubby area away from the door so no one could see us and read them a story, talked to them. You know, they kept saying, how come we're here so long? And I said, well, it will be a little longer. You know, when they're five, you tell them whatever you do to get -- keep them safe and keep them calm.

COOPER: This is what I've been thinking about all weekend, though. I mean, the courage for you to be able to just sit there and read a story and keep them calm.

VOLLMER: I think the adrenaline kicks in, and you do what you have to do. I mean there was two other people in the room that were helping me with, you know, pulling down the blinds and that. I was focused on the kids and, you know, just keeping them safe. And I'm not about to tell them that I think something is very bad or very wrong. So we waited and waited. And, you know, it seemed like a very long time. And maybe it was 20 minutes, a half an hour, I'm not sure.

There were knocks at the door. It was police, someone, telling us that we had to leave. Didn't want to open the door at first, but we did. And, you know, they said, have the children walk, hold hands, cover their eyes if they could because, you know, he didn't say why. He just said, have them cover their eyes. Well, at five, covering your eyes and walking isn't so easy. So I just had them, you know, look towards the wall and we went down the hall and out of the building. And, you know, we got on the sidewalk and I said, boys and girls, remember the adventure we had? We all walked to the firehouse? You know, we're going to do that now again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: As the entire nation grapples to come to terms with what happened in this small Connecticut town, we also want to take a look at how other countries approach gun control. Our Fareed Zakaria, he's going to weigh in on that as well.

BLITZER: Also, we're standing by, just want to remind our viewers, for a news conference. Connecticut State Police will be giving us all the latest on their investigation, what they can show us. You're looking at live pictures. The microphones are getting -- are set up and we will have all that information for you. You'll see it live right here on CNN.

We're getting to know more about the innocent young kids, the teachers also, who were gunned down like Ana Marquez-Greene, a six-year-old who loved to sing and play piano.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two, three, ready and go.

ANA MARQUEZ-GREENE, SHOOTING VICTIM: Come, thou almighty King, help us thy name to sing. Help us to praise. Father all glorious.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Authorities today are examining all of the weaponry, every single round of ammunition used in the Sandy Hook massacre.

It's not even clear how many shots were fired, but police have revealed what types of guns were actually recovered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. J. PAUL VANCE, CONNECTICUT STATE POLICE: The weapon that was utilized most of the time during this horrific crime was identified as a Bushmaster AR-15 assault-type weapon. It had high-capacity magazines. And in addition to that, the subject had in his possession a Glock 10-millimeter, a Sig Sauer 9-millimeter. Both weapons, all weapons, had multiple magazines and additional ammunition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: And those weapons used in the elementary school massacre were legally purchased and registered to Nancy Lanza, the mother of the suspected shooter, Adam Lanza.

And now the national tragedy, this senseless killing of 20 little children and six adults, is reuniting the debate on guns in this country.

I want to bring in Fareed Zakaria, joining us from New York. And, Fareed, you look at what happens in this country. We've got shootings in churches, malls, movie theaters, other schools, even the attempted murder of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, and now Sandy Hook.

When people look at what happens in our country, what do they make of it? What do they think of us?

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": Well, for everyone around the world, this issue of the United States is utterly mystifying because we know what works.

The United States has 15-to-20 times as much gun homicide and gun suicide -- by the way, a lot of it is suicide -- than any advanced country in the world. What's different? Do we have 15 times as many mentally disturbed people? Highly unlikely. Are we -- do we have 15 times more violent TV or video games? No. Japan has lots of violent video games and they actually have astonishingly low gun violence.

The big difference is that we have these incredibly loose gun laws that make access to the kind of weapons you just showed, Suzanne, very easy. The idea that people -- that anyone other than a law enforcement official should have that kind of weaponry, semi-automatic weaponry, assault rifles, is regarded by most of the world as crazy.

In Australia, the conservative government -- by the way, this is usually a conservative issue -- cracked down on easy access to guns and saw a 59 percent drop in gun homicide over the ...

MALVEAUX: Fareed, why do you suppose this is a political and a partisan issue in this country as opposed to other countries that don't seem to have that division over this issue?

ZAKARIA: Some of it does come from a tradition of gun ownership, from a suspicion -- you know, the original reason for the Second Amendment was concerns that the British government were trying to stop Americans from having arms. Some of it is certainly that.

But, look, places like Australia have some of that individualistic spirit, as well. I believe a large part of it is that over the last 40 years, we have had a very well organized, well-funded lobby that has made it impossible to have any kind of common-sense regulation of guns. We regulate cars much more than we regulate guns in this country. We regulate toys more than we do regulate guns.

I mean, you have -- guns can go off in this country when they fall, when they hit the floor. You've had examples of guns going off and you can't regulate so that that doesn't happen. You regulate toys not to malfunction like that.

MALVEAUX: How do you actually deal with that powerful lobby, the NRA, the NRA now saying that they are not yet in the debate. They'll comment with they get all the information from this latest massacre. But we've already had some indications, Congressman Manchin, who says, look, you know, perhaps I will go ahead and suggest to my NRA friends that they need to engage and need to take a different approach. Is this the moment that that is even possible?

ZAKARIA: I hope so because what I hope that we will do is now we'll start looking at facts rather than, you know, emotions. The time for emotions remains with regard to this horrific tragedy, but let's translate into action and the action depends on facts.

Why do we have 15 times as much gun homicide as the rest of the world? What can we do about it? What can we learn from other countries that have dealt with some of these issues? Why do countries like Japan have these extraordinarily low rates of gun homicide and gun suicide? And, if we can come up with something sensible -- and, frankly, if has to be more far reaching.

I mean, even the legislation proposed by Dianne Feinstein, a step forward though it is, has 900 exceptions for -- on the assault ban, 900 separate exceptions. How can something like that be enough, given the kind of tragedy we've just seen?

MALVEAUX: And, Fareed, finally, I want to read this quote to you. This is from Neil McDonald. He's a senior Washington correspondent for CBC News out of Canada. And he says -- and I'm quoting here -- "Yet another national discussion about guns is under way here and it's so anti-rational, so politically cowardly, so unbearably stupid, that you have to wonder how a nation that has enlightened the world in so many other ways could wallow in this kind of discussion."

Does this tarnish the United States' image in the eyes of many who look at this and say, really? Another gun discussion?

ZAKARIA: Of course, it does and it does for appropriate reasons. I've been listening to some of the commentary and, you know, we keep talking about the evil of this person and the psychology and, you know, maybe the violence in the culture.

All that could explain any one instance. It cannot explain the fact that, as I say, we have 15 times as much gun violence as other countries. We have to be willing to confront the reality that we're way out of line here and we have something to learn from other people.

MALVEAUX: All right. Got to take a real critical look at our culture here in the United States. Thanks, Fareed. I really appreciate it.

BLITZER: Faith tested by tragedy, we're going to hear from a Newtown Sunday school teacher about how she's talking to her students about what happened.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: President Obama has a message for all of us in the aftermath of the massacre here in Newtown. These tragedies, he says, they must end.

At a prayer service last night, the president said he wants the people of this heartbroken community to know they are not alone.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OBAMA: I come to offer the love and prayers of a nation. I am very mindful that mere words cannot match the depths of your sorrow nor can they heal your wounded hearts. I can only hope it helps for you to know that you're not alone in your grief.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: The president turned to scripture as a way to console all those suffering families and the whole community. Many look to their faith for comfort after a tragedy like this, even Sunday school kids.

And here in Newtown, there were some empty seats in one Sunday school classroom yesterday. Jason Carroll has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is where some of the children who were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary prayed and went to Sunday school at Trinity Episcopal Church.

Sue Vogelman taught some of those children. She was back on this Sunday for all her students, including some of those who survived.

You had a lot of children here in this room. What was that like for you?

SUE VOGELMAN, TRINITY EPISCOPAL CHURCH SCHOOL DIRECTOR: It was a little bit -- it was actually very scary because I spent yesterday trying to prepare for today, but you don't know what's going to happen. And right -- you know, right in the middle of it, a child just raised their hand. I said, "Yes?" And they said, "My friends died."

And then later on when we got to the part where we prayed, pretty much every child in here all had a prayer and many of them were, "My friend Jack died. My friend Ben died. My friend Charlotte died."

So we prayed. We prayed. We probably prayed more than we've ever prayed before.

CARROLL: Vogelman knew there would be anxiety among the children and their parents. She saw both.

VOGELMAN: We were a little worried. There were kids, their parents had said that they didn't want to come to class because, again, it's like a school and they were worried. And the first grade class, one girl didn't want to come because Ben wouldn't be there and, you know, so there was a lot of anxiety. Ben would have been sitting right here on this carpet with me.

So, you know, when the kids bring it up that, you know, "My friend Ben died" -- I had to do the attendance. We have attendance sign-in pages for the parents. The parents have to sign their child in and out of church. And, as I was putting them in the boxes last night, the first grade page had Ben's name on it and I remember thinking, this is going to be hanging in the hall, and his name's not going to be signed in.

And I didn't know if I should leave his name on there or take it off, so I printed one out with it off. And as I was going up to ask Pastor Kathy, I started crying. You know, it really hit me. I deleted his name.

CARROLL: To help ease the grief, Vogelman had the children write cards. This one says, "Charlotte is safe now."

VOGELMAN: Yeah, that's for Charlotte. That was for little Charlotte who went here.

CARROLL: Charlotte was six-years old. Another card reads, in part, "You're not alone."

Vogelman says she felt pride in the strength she saw in her Sunday school children.

VOGELMAN: I've been working with kids my whole adult life, so, you know, they're my kids. They're my kids. You know, people on Facebook are like, I'm so glad your kids are OK. I'm like, I am obviously very glad my kids are OK, but my kids are not OK. My kids died. That's how everyone feels in Newtown. Sorry. They were babies.

CARROLL: Jason Carroll, CNN, Newtown, Connecticut.

(END VIDEOTAPE) MALVEAUX: Of course, there are no easy answers after a tragedy like this, but what are lawmakers, politicians, what are they trying to do to prevent more massacres? Can they even do anything?

We're going to go live to Washington to find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)