Sandy Hook Shooting — 20 Children, 6 Adults Killed; Senate Background Check Bill Fails

A gunman killed 20 first-graders and 6 school staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut on December 14, 2012. President Obama called it the worst day of his presidency. A Senate bill expanding background checks for gun sales failed in April 2013 despite 90% public support, blocked by a Republican filibuster. Alex Jones's years of false claims that Sandy Hook was staged resulted in $1.5B in defamation judgments against him in 2022.