New Haven attorney Irv Pinsky has filed a lawsuit on behalf of a 6-year-old survivor of the Sandy Hook massacre in Connecticut. It is the first suit to be filed in connection with the shooting.
There were twenty-six victims in the incident, including twenty children and six adults. 20-year-old gunman Adam Lanza was left dead at the scene in an apparent suicide. His mother was later found at her home also apparently killed by Lanza.
According to Reuters, Pinsky filed a claim stating that his client heard "cursing, screaming, and shooting" over the school intercom, and has "sustained emotional and psychological trauma and injury." Pinsky is quoted as saying, "We all know its going to happen again. Society has to take action."
Pinsky claims that the state and officials failed to enact safeguards and policies to protect children. He described the event as "foreseeable harm" and faulted the state for having inadequate protocol for an emergency.
According to the Hartford Courant, Pinsky stated, "Usually a fellow like Adam Lanza would have been known as a potential problem to the police."
The event has shaken the Newtown community, and struck a nerve across the nation. It has also awakened the debate over gun control, with a USA Today / Gallup poll showing greater support for gun control in the wake of the massacre, but with opinions on "longstanding proposals" such as banning assault rifles as yet unchanged.
It is not clear what safeguards Pinsky would expect the state to enact to protect children from this sort of violence. According to the Washington Post, the National Rifle Association recently drew criticism after its Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre proposed to install armed guards in schools rather than limit the purchase of guns.
