View source for Unsolved:Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting conspiracy theories

{{Short description|Claims that the 2012 mass shooting was a US government plot}}
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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.<ref>{{cite web |work= Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting Reports |title= Connecticut State Police Final Report on Sandy Hook shooting incident December 14, 2012 |url= http://cspsandyhookreport.ct.gov/ |publisher= Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection |access-date= December 28, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131228025247/http://cspsandyhookreport.ct.gov/ |archive-date= December 28, 2013 |url-status= live |df= mdy-all }}</ref> A number of fringe figures have promoted [[Unsolved:Conspiracy theory|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 [[Engineering:Gun control|gun control]] laws.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://vancouversun.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+tragedy+elaborate+government+hoax/7822502/story.html|title=Conspiracy theorists claim Sandy Hook tragedy is elaborate government hoax|date=January 16, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190112120207/http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+tragedy+elaborate+government+hoax/7822502/story.html|archive-date=January 12, 2019|url-status=live|newspaper=Vancouver Sun|access-date=2013-01-17|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

The more common conspiracy theory, adopted initially by James Fetzer, James Tracy, and others, and further popularized by Alex Jones, [[Unsolved:Historical negationism|denied]] that the massacre actually occurred, asserting that it was faked. The massacre was described by Fetzer and Tracy as a classified training exercise involving members of federal and local law enforcement, the news media, and [[Unsolved:Crisis actor|crisis actors]], which they claim was modeled on Operation Closed Campus, an Iowa school-shooting drill that was canceled in 2011 amid threats and public outcry. Jones described the shooting incident as "synthetic, completely fake with actors; in my view, manufactured [...] it just shows how bold they are that they clearly used actors."<ref>{{Cite news|last=Williamson|first=Elizabeth|date=2019-03-29|title=How Alex Jones and Infowars Helped a Florida Man Torment Sandy Hook Families|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/29/us/politics/alex-jones-infowars-sandy-hook.html|access-date=2021-06-07|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=May 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210518093648/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/29/us/politics/alex-jones-infowars-sandy-hook.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Sommerfeldt|first=Chris|date=November 18, 2016|title=SEE IT: Right-wing conspiracy theorist Alex Jones doubles down on 'completely fake' Sandy Hook massacre claims|url=https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/alex-jones-doubles-completely-fake-sandy-hook-claims-article-1.2878305|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170303201639/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/alex-jones-doubles-completely-fake-sandy-hook-claims-article-1.2878305|archive-date=March 3, 2017|access-date=June 7, 2021|website=New York Daily News}}</ref>

No evidence supports the conspiracy theories, which make a number of implausible claims.<ref name="Moynihan">{{cite web|last=Moynihan|first=Michael C.|title=Newtown Conspiracy Theories: Obama, Iran, and Other Culprits|url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/12/27/newtown-conspiracy-theories-obama-iran-and-other-culprits.html|publisher=The Daily Beast|access-date=January 9, 2013|date=December 27, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130108232344/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/12/27/newtown-conspiracy-theories-obama-iran-and-other-culprits.html|archive-date=January 8, 2013|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref name=Bennett>{{cite news |title=Newtown Conspiracy Theories, Debunked |first=Dashiell |last=Bennett |url=http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2012/12/newtown-shooting-conspiracy-theories/60126/ |newspaper=The Atlantic |date=18 December 2012 |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115090647/http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2012/12/newtown-shooting-conspiracy-theories/60126/ |archive-date=January 15, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=Fisher>{{cite news |title=Iran's state-run news network blames 'Israeli death squads' for Sandy Hook shooting |first=Max |last=Fisher |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2012/12/18/irans-state-run-news-network-blames-israeli-death-squads-for-sandy-hook-shooting/ |newspaper={{wipe|The Washington Post}} |date=18 December 2012 |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150511083914/http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2012/12/18/irans-state-run-news-network-blames-israeli-death-squads-for-sandy-hook-shooting/ |archive-date=May 11, 2015 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Moreover, many Sandy Hook conspiracy theories contradict one another.<ref name=Bennett/> A number of sources have published articles debunking various claims put forward by conspiracy theorists.<ref name=Bennett /><ref name="Snopes Exposed">{{cite web|title=Sandy Hook Exposed|date=December 15, 2012 |url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/guns/newtown.asp#hoax|publisher=Snopes.com|access-date=20 April 2013}}</ref><ref name="Huff Post Stuart">{{cite news|last=Stuart|first=Hunter|title=Sandy Hook Hoax Theories Explained: Why Newtown 'Truther' Arguments Don't Hold Up|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/11/sandy-hook-hoax-theories-explained-debunking-newtown-truther_n_2627233.html|publisher=Huffington Post|access-date=20 April 2013|date=11 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130402053107/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/11/sandy-hook-hoax-theories-explained-debunking-newtown-truther_n_2627233.html|archive-date=April 2, 2013|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref name="Huff Post Sieczkowski">{{cite news|last=Sieczkowski|first=Cavan|title=Sandy Hook Conspiracy Theory Video Debunked By Experts|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/16/sandy-hook-conspiracy-theory-video-debunked_n_2487427.html|publisher=Huffington Post|access-date=20 April 2013|date=16 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130218011018/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/16/sandy-hook-conspiracy-theory-video-debunked_n_2487427.html|archive-date=February 18, 2013|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> In 2018, the parents of several children killed in the Sandy Hook shooting launched a lawsuit against Jones and other authors of conspiracy videos for defamation, accusing them of engaging in a campaign of "false, cruel, and dangerous assertions".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cooper |first=Aaron |date=2018-05-24 |title=Six more Sandy Hook families sue broadcaster Alex Jones |url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/23/us/alex-jones-sandy-hook-suit/index.html |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> In 2019, Jones reversed his stance and stated that the massacre was real.<ref name="Vox2019">{{cite web |last1=Sakuma |first1=Amanda |title=Alex Jones blames "psychosis" for his Sandy Hook conspiracies |url=https://www.vox.com/2019/3/31/18289271/alex-jones-psychosis-conspiracies-sandy-hook-hoax |website=Vox |access-date=6 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190611042048/https://www.vox.com/2019/3/31/18289271/alex-jones-psychosis-conspiracies-sandy-hook-hoax |archive-date=June 11, 2019 |language=en |date=31 March 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Conspiracy claims==

===United States government involvement===
Some conspiracy theorists claim that the shooting was a hoax<ref>{{cite news |author=Vancouver Sun |url=https://vancouversun.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+tragedy+elaborate+government/7822502/story.html |title=Conspiracy theorists claim Sandy Hook tragedy is elaborate government hoax |publisher=The Vancouver Sun |date=2013-01-11 |access-date=2013-01-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215222331/http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+tragedy+elaborate+government/7822502/story.html |archive-date=December 15, 2018 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> and a [[Social:False flag|false flag]] operation staged by the United States government.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.infosalvo.com/us-news/newton-connecticut-elementary-shooting-is-a-staged-false-flag/ |title=Newtown Connecticut Elementary Shooting Is a Staged False Flag Against Gun Owners and Preppers |last=McCarson |first=Matt |date=December 14, 2012 |publisher=InfoSalvo.com |access-date=January 15, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130105071947/http://www.infosalvo.com/us-news/newton-connecticut-elementary-shooting-is-a-staged-false-flag/ |archive-date=January 5, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Others say the attack is being used by politicians to push through new [[Engineering:Gun control|gun control]] legislation,<ref>{{cite web|last=Dean|first=Marion|url=http://www.globalnewsdesk.co.uk/north-america/conspiracy-sandy-hook-hoax-emilie-parker/03040/ |title=Sandy Hook conspiracy cult: Shootings a hoax staged to pass gun control laws |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150703103522/http://www.globalnewsdesk.co.uk/north-america/conspiracy-sandy-hook-hoax-emilie-parker/03040/|archive-date=July 3, 2015|publisher=Globalnewsdesk.co.uk |access-date=2013-01-17}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Luke Hammill |url=http://newyork.newsday.com/westchester/westchester-now-1.3784383/sandy-hook-conspiracy-theories-spread-in-wake-of-newtown-tragedy-1.4458433 |title=Sandy Hook conspiracy theories spread in wake of Newtown tragedy |publisher=Newyork.newsday.com |date=January 16, 2013 |access-date=2013-01-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130302001406/http://newyork.newsday.com/westchester/westchester-now-1.3784383/sandy-hook-conspiracy-theories-spread-in-wake-of-newtown-tragedy-1.4458433 |archive-date=March 2, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Ferguson |first=Christopher J. |url=http://ideas.time.com/2012/12/15/sandy-hook-shooting-why-did-lanza-target-a-school/?iid=obnetwork |title=Sandy Hook Shooting: Why Did Lanza Target a School? |publisher=Ideas.time.com |date=15 December 2012 |access-date=2013-01-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130118082732/http://ideas.time.com/2012/12/15/sandy-hook-shooting-why-did-lanza-target-a-school/?iid=obnetwork |archive-date=January 18, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> or to otherwise persecute gun owners and [[Social:Survivalism|survivalists]].<ref name=Bennett />

Lawyer and dentist Orly Taitz&mdash;best known for her promotion of Barack Obama citizenship ("birther") conspiracy theories&mdash;was quoted as asking "Was Adam Lanza drugged and hypnotized by his handlers to make him into a killing machine as an excuse as the regime is itching to take all means of self defense from the populace before the economic collapse?"<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/18/orly-taitz-sandy-hook-obama_n_2325671.html | work=Huffington Post | first=John | last=Celock | title=Birther Queen Blames Obama For Sandy Hook Massacre | date=December 18, 2012 | access-date=August 16, 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140912204403/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/18/orly-taitz-sandy-hook-obama_n_2325671.html | archive-date=September 12, 2014 | url-status=live | df=mdy-all }}</ref><!-- See talk -->

Talk show host Clyde Lewis wrote: "Don't you find it at all interesting that Adam Lanza, the alleged shooter at Sandy Hook, woke up one day and decided to shoot up a school and kill children at about the same time that Barack Obama told the U.N. that he would sign the small arms treaty?"<ref>{{cite web |last=Patton |first=Ron |url=http://www.groundzeromedia.org/mental-hopscotch/ |title=Ground Zero » Mental Hopscotch |publisher=Groundzeromedia.org |date=2013-04-12 |access-date=2017-06-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140305235005/http://www.groundzeromedia.org/mental-hopscotch/ |archive-date=March 5, 2014 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

According to Live Science, "No one, regardless of what side of the gun control issue they are on, can deny that guns played a key role in the Sandy Hook killings. So the conspiracy theorists must instead challenge the claim that the attack even occurred. They believe it's all a hoax to scare people into supporting more gun control and a step toward an outright repeal of the Second Amendment." They also found that the vast majority of evidence used by conspiracy theorists to support the concept that Sandy Hook was a hoax is contradictory.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Radford|first1=Benjamin|title=Why Sandy Hook Massacre Spawned Conspiracy Theories|url=http://www.livescience.com/26314-sandy-hook-massacre-conspiracy-theories.html|access-date=26 May 2015|publisher=Live Science|date=January 16, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130403010209/http://www.livescience.com/26314-sandy-hook-massacre-conspiracy-theories.html|archive-date=April 3, 2013|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> [[Philosophy:Snopes.com|Snopes.com]] also debunked several claims of alleged United States government involvement in the shootings.<ref name="Snopes Exposed" />

====Operation Closed Campus====
Fetzer, Tracy, and others have claimed the shooting was a classified training-exercise modeled on Operation Closed Campus, a "full-spectrum" school-shooting drill involving the Department of Homeland Security, Iowa emergency-management agencies, state and local police, prosecuting attorneys, emergency radio operators, emergency medical personnel, moulage, local doctors and hospitals, the Red Cross, medical examiners, news media reporters, and crisis actors that was canceled in 2011 amid threats and public outcry.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Fetzer |editor1-first=Jim |editor2-last=Palececk |editor2-first=Mike |title=Nobody Died at Sandy Hook: It was a FEMA Drill to Promote Gun Control |date=2015 |publisher=Moon Rock Books |isbn=978-1518650840 |url=https://avalonlibrary.net/ebooks/Jim%20Fetzer%2C%20Mike%20Palecek%20-%20Nobody%20Died%20at%20Sandy%20Hook.pdf |access-date=1 July 2021 |quote=|via=avalonlibrary.net}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author1=Operation Closed Campus Exercise Planning Team |title=Operation Closed Campus: Exercise Plan (EXPLAN) |url=https://www.foxnews.com/projects/pdf/ExPlan_03222011.pdf |access-date=1 July 2021 |publisher=Pottawattamie County Emergency Management Agency |date=21 March 2011 |location=Council Bluffs, Iowa |language=en |quote=School Shooting: March 26, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Johnson |first1=Tim |title=Pottawattamie County to conduct school crisis exercise |url=https://nonpareilonline.com/archive/pottawattamie-county-to-conduct-school-crisis-exercise/article_6f2a3ff0-33dd-536b-883f-500b5a256050.html |access-date=1 July 2021 |work=The Daily Nonpareil |date=24 March 2011 |location=Council Bluffs, Iowa |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Macedo |first1=Diane |title=Iowa Safety Drill Portraying Shooter as 'Anti-Immigration' Pro-Gun Student Canceled |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/iowa-safety-drill-portraying-shooter-as-anti-immigration-pro-gun-student-canceled |access-date=1 July 2021 |work=Fox News |date=25 March 2011 |quote=Updated 22 November 2015}}</ref>

===Claims broadcast by Iranian television===
Press TV, the official state media outlet of [[Religion:Iran|Iran]], has promoted various antisemitic conspiracy theories blaming "[[Place:Israel|Israel]]i death squads" for the shooting.<ref name=Bennett/><ref name=Moynihan/> Press TV interviewed ''Veterans Today'' website writer Gordon Duff, who quoted Michael Harris, a former Republican candidate for governor of Arizona, who made the "Israeli death squads" claim.<ref name="Fisher"/> Harris has publicly associated with [[Social:Neo-Nazism|neo-Nazi]] groups in the past and has previously claimed that Israel was responsible for the 2011 Norway attacks.<ref name="Fisher"/> Duff asserted that the attacks were an act of "revenge" for the perceived cooling of Israel–United States relations under President Obama, especially as a response to Obama's decision to nominate former senator Chuck Hagel, a perceived critic of Israel, for the position of United States Secretary of Defense.<ref name="Fisher"/> In another broadcast by Press TV, Holocaust denier James H. Fetzer claimed that the massacre "appears to have been a psy op intended to strike fear in the hearts of Americans" that was conducted by "agents of Israel."<ref name="Moynihan" />

''The Washington Post'' reported that claims broadcast on Press TV contain a large number of "obvious logical fallacies" typical of Iranian propaganda, which "has a well-earned reputation for incendiary anti-Israel stories and for wild conspiracy theories."<ref name="Fisher"/> ''The Atlantic'' wrote that the story "obviously plays on the worst fears of those who believe in secret Jewish cabals that run the world, but it's a pretty pathetic attempt at slander, even for Iran."<ref name=Bennett/>

===Additional conspirators===
Ben Swann, a Cincinnati news anchor for Fox affiliate WXIX-TV, has suggested on his personal YouTube channel that Adam Lanza was accompanied by another shooter; he has made similar claims about the Aurora shooting and the Wisconsin Sikh temple shooting from earlier in 2012.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sandy Hook truther-reporter? |first=Alex |last=Seitz-Wald |url=http://www.salon.com/2013/01/14/is_it_okay_for_reporters_to_question_the_official_narrative_of_sandy_hook/ |newspaper=Salon |date=14 January 2013 |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116022719/http://www.salon.com/2013/01/14/is_it_okay_for_reporters_to_question_the_official_narrative_of_sandy_hook/ |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Conspiracy theorists claim Sandy Hook tragedy is elaborate government hoax |url=https://vancouversun.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+tragedy+elaborate+government/7822502/story.html |newspaper=The Vancouver Sun |date=15 January 2013 |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215222331/http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+tragedy+elaborate+government/7822502/story.html |archive-date=December 15, 2018 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Other conspiracy theorists have claimed that as many as four shooters were present.<ref name=Bennett/>

There is no credible evidence that any additional shooters were present at the event.<ref name="Snopes Exposed" /> Some such reports may have been influenced by confused early news reports of the events.<ref name=Bennett/>

===Relationship to LIBOR scandal===
Other conspiracy theories have focused on the claim that Adam Lanza's father was an executive with GE Energy Financial Services.<ref name=Bennett/><ref>{{cite news |title=Body of Connecticut shooter Adam Lanza quietly claimed by his father |first=Matt |last=Pearce |url=https://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-adam-lanza-newtown-20121230,0,561090.story |newspaper={{wipe|Los Angeles Times}} |date=31 December 2012 |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130123140638/http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-adam-lanza-newtown-20121230,0,561090.story |archive-date=January 23, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> According to these theories, Lanza's father was supposed to testify before the Senate Banking Committee with information about the [[Finance:Libor scandal|Libor scandal]]. However, no such hearings were scheduled. Similar claims had been made about the father of James Holmes, the convicted perpetrator of the 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting.<ref name=Bennett/><ref>{{cite news |title=Newtown Conspiracy Hoax Spreads Fast Across Fringe |first=Benjy |last=Sarlin |url=http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/12/newtown-libor-hunger-games-theories.php |newspaper=Talking Points Memo |date=17 December 2012 |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116090202/http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/12/newtown-libor-hunger-games-theories.php |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

===Timestamps of memorial sites===
Conspiracy theories have claimed that various timestamps for creation dates, whois records, and [[Company:Google|Google]] [[Web cache|caches]] of various memorial websites, fundraising sites, and [[Company:Facebook|Facebook]] were created before or immediately after the date and time of the shooting and are therefore "evidence" of a conspiracy or cover up. However, timestamps are frequently incorrect, particularly on search engines. Some timestamps are initially created and assigned to URLs that are then repurposed, meaning that a URL linked to a current event can have a much older date.<ref name="Huff Post Stuart" /><ref name="Huff Post Sieczkowski" />

===Alex Jones claims===
In September 2014, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, who runs the website ''[[Company:InfoWars|InfoWars]]'', which had previously claimed that the murders were a "false flag" attack perpetrated by the government, made a new conspiracy claim that "no one died" at Sandy Hook Elementary School because the Uniform Crime Reports showed no murders in Newtown for 2012, and that the victims were "child actors."<ref>Dylan Baddour & W. Gardner Selby, [http://www.politifact.com/texas/statements/2016/sep/01/hillary-clinton/hillary-clinton-correct-austins-alex-jones-said-no/ Hillary Clinton correct that Austin's Alex Jones said no one died at Sandy Hook Elementary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170303201414/http://www.politifact.com/texas/statements/2016/sep/01/hillary-clinton/hillary-clinton-correct-austins-alex-jones-said-no/ |date=March 3, 2017 }}, ''PolitiFact'' (September 1, 2016).</ref><ref name="SnopesDebunk">David Mikkelson, [http://www.snopes.com/info/news/sandyhoax.asp FBI Admits Sandy Hook Hoax?: Rumor: The FBI revealed that no murders occurred in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012, proving the Sandy Hook massacre was an elaborate hoax], Snopes (February 7, 2015).</ref> This claim is false and misrepresents the FBI report. In reality, because the Connecticut State Police was the lead investigator after the attack, the Sandy Hook victims were included in Connecticut's statewide records (under "State Police Misc.") rather than under the Newtown statistics.<ref name="SnopesDebunk"/><ref name=npe1>{{cite news| title=Sandy Hook Hoaxers Misrepresent FBI Crime Stats| url=http://newtownpostexaminer.com/2014/09/25/sandy-hook-hoaxers-misrepresent-fbi-crime-stats/| access-date=3 July 2015| publisher=Newtown Post-Examiner| date=September 26, 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150703121039/http://newtownpostexaminer.com/2014/09/25/sandy-hook-hoaxers-misrepresent-fbi-crime-stats/| archive-date=July 3, 2015| url-status=live| df=mdy-all}}</ref>

In November 2016, Erica L. Lafferty, daughter of Dawn Lafferty Hochsprung, the school principal who was shot and killed at Sandy Hook School, wrote open letters to then-President-elect Donald Trump (published in ''Medium'' and ''[[Software:USA Today|USA Today]]''), calling upon him to denounce Jones,<ref name="TrumpJones">*Erica L. Lafferty, [https://medium.com/@EricaSmegs/denounce-sandy-hook-truther-alex-jones-31ca8315fe2#.pgxvue3sh Denounce Sandy Hook Denier Alex Jones: My Open Letter to President-Elect Trump] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170219094558/https://medium.com/@EricaSmegs/denounce-sandy-hook-truther-alex-jones-31ca8315fe2#.pgxvue3sh#.pgxvue3sh |date=February 19, 2017 }}, ''Medium'' (November 16, 2017).
*Marlow Stern, [http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/11/18/erica-lafferty-lost-her-mother-in-sandy-hook-trump-s-ties-to-truther-alex-jones-disgust-her.html Erica Lafferty Lost Her Mother in Sandy Hook. Trump's Ties to Truther Alex Jones Disgust Her] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170303210201/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/11/18/erica-lafferty-lost-her-mother-in-sandy-hook-trump-s-ties-to-truther-alex-jones-disgust-her.html |date=March 3, 2017 }}, ''Daily Beast'' (November 18, 2016).
*Erica Lafferty, [https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/11/25/donald-trump-sandy-hook-alex-jones-column/94335420/ Mr. Trump, denounce Alex Jones: Sandy Hook principal's daughter] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171003080653/https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2016/11/25/donald-trump-sandy-hook-alex-jones-column/94335420/ |date=October 3, 2017 }}, ''USA Today'' (November 25, 2016).</ref> after Trump had appeared on  ''InfoWars'' during his presidential campaign and lavished praise on its presenter, saying that the conspiracy theorist had an "amazing" reputation and pledging not to let him down.<ref name="TrumpJones"/> On February 20, 2017, the Newtown School Board wrote to President Trump and urged him to recognize the murders of 26 people at Sandy Hook and to "remove your support from anyone who continues to insist that the tragedy was staged or not real."<ref name="Blair">Russell Blair, [http://www.courant.com/politics/hc-newtown-school-board-trump-letter-20170403-story.html Trump Silent After Newtown Asks Him To Denounce Sandy Hook Deniers] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170410054552/http://www.courant.com/politics/hc-newtown-school-board-trump-letter-20170403-story.html |date=April 10, 2017 }}, ''Hartford Courant'' (April 4, 2017).</ref><ref name="Hoffman">Christopher Hoffman, [https://www.cjr.org/local_news/sandy-hook-trump.php Newtown tries—and so far, fails—to get Trump to acknowledge Sandy Hook massacre] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170410051207/https://www.cjr.org/local_news/sandy-hook-trump.php |date=April 10, 2017 }}, ''Columbia Journalism Review'' (March 31, 2017).</ref><ref name="BBC Trending 2 April 2017">{{cite web|url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-trending-39194035|title= Sandy Hook to Trump: 'Help us stop conspiracy theorists'|last= Wendling|first= Mike|date= 2 April 2017|website= BBC News Online|publisher= BBC|access-date= 2 April 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180411110602/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-trending-39194035|archive-date= April 11, 2018|url-status= live|df= mdy-all}}</ref> Trump did not respond to the letter.<ref name="Blair"/><ref name="Hoffman"/>

On April 16, 2018, parents of two victims of the shooting sued Jones in Travis County, Texas (where Jones' media company is based), for $1 million each.<ref>[https://www.buzzfeed.com/nidhiprakash/parents-of-children-who-were-killed-in-sandy-hook-are-suing Parents Of Children Who Were Killed In Sandy Hook Are Suing Alex Jones Over His Conspiracy Theories] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180417231727/https://www.buzzfeed.com/nidhiprakash/parents-of-children-who-were-killed-in-sandy-hook-are-suing |date=April 17, 2018 }} ''BuzzFeed News'', April 17, 2018</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-sandy-hook-alex-jones-lawsuit-20180523-story.html|title=More families of Sandy Hook victims, FBI agent sue Infowars' Alex Jones|last=Collins|first=Dave|website=chicagotribune.com|date=May 23, 2018 |access-date=2020-04-06|archive-date=April 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406164226/https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-sandy-hook-alex-jones-lawsuit-20180523-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://time.com/5243124/sandy-hook-parents-alex-jones/|title=The Parents of Kids Killed at Sandy Hook Are Suing Alex Jones for Defamation|magazine=Time|date=April 17, 2018 |language=en|access-date=2020-04-06|archive-date=March 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200308163633/https://time.com/5243124/sandy-hook-parents-alex-jones/|url-status=live}}</ref>  The trial was expected to be scheduled by the end of 2020.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Vigdor|first=Neil|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/31/us/Alex-Jones-sandy-hook.html|title=Judge Orders Alex Jones and Infowars to Pay $100,000 in Sandy Hook Legal Fees|date=2019-12-31|work=The New York Times|access-date=2020-04-06|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=January 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200101012602/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/31/us/Alex-Jones-sandy-hook.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

On May 23, 2018, six families of victims of the shooting, as well as an FBI agent who responded to the attack, filed a defamation lawsuit in Bridgeport Superior Court in Connecticut<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-sandy-hook-alex-jones-lawsuit-20180523-story.html|title=More families of Sandy Hook victims, FBI agent sue Infowars' Alex Jones|last=Collins|first=Dave|website=chicagotribune.com|date=May 23, 2018 |access-date=2020-04-06|archive-date=April 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406164226/https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-sandy-hook-alex-jones-lawsuit-20180523-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref> against Jones for his role in spreading conspiracy theories about the shooting.<ref name=CNN>{{cite news |url= https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/23/us/alex-jones-sandy-hook-suit/index.html |title= Alex Jones, 'InfoWars' host, sued by 6 more Sandy Hook families |author= Aaron Cooper |work= CNN |date= 24 May 2018 |access-date= 26 May 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180621194151/https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/23/us/alex-jones-sandy-hook-suit/index.html |archive-date= June 21, 2018 |url-status= live |df= mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=Independent>{{cite news |url= https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/alex-jones-sued-sandy-hook-victims-families-defamation-infowars-a8368346.html |title= US shock jock Alex Jones sued by six more families of Sandy Hook victims |author= Emily Shugerman |work= The Independent |date= 25 May 2018 |access-date= 26 May 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180922203614/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/alex-jones-sued-sandy-hook-victims-families-defamation-infowars-a8368346.html |archive-date= September 22, 2018 |url-status= live |df= mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=USATodaySH>{{cite web |url= https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2018/05/24/sandy-hook-families-sue-infowars-alex-jones-over-conspiracy-theory/641159002/ |title= Sandy Hook families suing Alex Jones aren't the only ones to threaten conspiracy theorist |author= Josh Hafner |work= [[Software:USA Today|USA Today]] |date= 23 May 2018 |access-date= 26 May 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20180929032647/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2018/05/24/sandy-hook-families-sue-infowars-alex-jones-over-conspiracy-theory/641159002/ |archive-date= September 29, 2018 |url-status= live |df= mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=CTT>{{cite web |url= http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-sandy-hook-alex-jones-lawsuit-20180523-story.html |title= More families of Sandy Hook victims, FBI agent sue ''Infowars''{{'}} Alex Jones |author= Dave Collins |work= Associated Press Chicago Tribune |date= 23 May 2018 |access-date= 26 May 2018 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20181101084709/https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-sandy-hook-alex-jones-lawsuit-20180523-story.html |archive-date= November 1, 2018 |url-status= live |df= mdy-all }}</ref>

In a deposition in the last week of March 2019, Jones acknowledged the deaths were real, stating he had "almost like a form of psychosis", where he "basically thought everything was staged."<ref name="DSu60">{{cite news |last1=Maxouris |first1=Christina |last2=Joseph |first2=Elizabeth |title=Alex Jones says 'form of psychosis' made him believe events like Sandy Hook massacre were staged |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/30/us/alex-jones-psychosis-sandy-hook/index.html |work=CNN |access-date=March 30, 2019 |archive-date=March 30, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330133329/https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/30/us/alex-jones-psychosis-sandy-hook/index.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

By 2021, Jones did not provide information to support his claims, defaulting in favor of the plaintiffs.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hauser |first=Christine |date=2021-10-01 |title=Alex Jones Loses by Default in Sandy Hook Defamation Lawsuits |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/01/us/alex-jones-lawsuit-sandy-hook.html |access-date=2022-03-24 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Mistich |first=Dave |date=2021-11-15 |title=Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones ruled liable in Sandy Hook defamation case |language=en |work=NPR |url=https://www.npr.org/2021/11/15/1055864452/alex-jones-found-liable-for-defamation-in-sandy-hook-hoax-case |access-date=2022-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Alex Jones Loses Lawsuit Over Sandy Hook 'Hoax' Conspiracy {{!}} Connecticut News {{!}} US News |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2021-11-15/alex-jones-loses-lawsuit-over-sandy-hook-hoax-conspiracy |access-date=March 24, 2020  |website=USAnews}}</ref>

===James Tracy===
James Tracy, a former professor at [[Organization:Florida Atlantic University|Florida Atlantic University]] (FAU) who taught a course on conspiracy theories, has suggested the shooting either did not actually occur or occurred very differently than accounted in mainstream reports, claiming political motives for the coverup.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.neurope.eu/article/sandy-hook-samaritan-faces-internet-harassment |title=Sandy hook Samaritan faces internet harassment |author=Stanislava Gaydazhieva |publisher=New Europe Online |date=Jan 16, 2013 |access-date=2013-01-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130118184608/http://www.neurope.eu/article/sandy-hook-samaritan-faces-internet-harassment |archive-date=January 18, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://memoryholeblog.com/2012/12/24/the-sandy-hook-massacre-unanswered-questions-and-missing-information/ |title=The Sandy Hook Massacre: Unanswered Questions and Missing Information |last=Tracy |first=James |date=24 December 2012 |publisher=Memory Hole |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130113024607/http://memoryholeblog.com/2012/12/24/the-sandy-hook-massacre-unanswered-questions-and-missing-information/ |archive-date=January 13, 2013 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref> FAU president Mary Jane Saunders issued a statement that Tracy's views were "not shared by" the university.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sandy Hook community leader rips Florida professor who doubted massacre |first=Joshua Rhett |last=Miller |url=http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/01/08/florida-professor-questions-newtown-shooting-massacre-calls-for-more/ |publisher=Fox News |date=9 January 2013 |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117105821/http://www.foxnews.com/us/2013/01/08/florida-professor-questions-newtown-shooting-massacre-calls-for-more/ |archive-date=January 17, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> In response to his comments, the university opened an investigation of Tracy, who had tenure.<ref>{{cite news |title=James Tracy: FAU opens investigation, leaving him unsure of job status |first=Ryan |last=Cortes |url=http://upressonline.com/2013/01/fau-opens-investigation-on-james-tracy-leaving-him-unsure-of-job-status/ |publisher=University Press (Florida Atlantic University) |date=16 January 2013 |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130118075332/http://upressonline.com/2013/01/fau-opens-investigation-on-james-tracy-leaving-him-unsure-of-job-status/ |archive-date=January 18, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

In December 2015, after the family of Noah Pozner—one of the children murdered at Sandy Hook—claimed that Tracy had harassed them, FAU moved to fire Tracy.<ref>{{cite news |last=Svrluga |first=Susan |title=University moves to fire professor who says Sandy Hook massacre is a hoax — and allegedly harassed parents of victims |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2015/12/17/professor-who-says-sandy-hook-massacre-is-a-hoax-and-allegedly-harassed-parents-of-victims-gets-fired/ |newspaper={{wipe|The Washington Post}} |date=17 December 2015 |access-date=17 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151217220109/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2015/12/17/professor-who-says-sandy-hook-massacre-is-a-hoax-and-allegedly-harassed-parents-of-victims-gets-fired/ |archive-date=December 17, 2015 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Chan Lowe of the ''Sun-Sentinel'' speculated that the comments were a [[Social:Publicity stunt|publicity stunt]] by Tracy.<ref>{{cite news |title=FAU prof's Sandy Hook conspiracy theory |first=Chan |last=Lowe |url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2013-01-11/news/sfl-fau-profs-sandy-hook-conspiracy-theory-20130111_1_sandy-hook-conspiracy-chan-lowe |newspaper=Sun-Sentinel |date=11 January 2013 |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130429005426/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2013-01-11/news/sfl-fau-profs-sandy-hook-conspiracy-theory-20130111_1_sandy-hook-conspiracy-chan-lowe |archive-date=April 29, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Tracy later declined an appearance on CNN with Anderson Cooper, suggesting that Cooper wanted to bring him and his family members harm by identifying him in a prior broadcast.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://memoryholeblog.com/2013/01/12/does-anderson-cooper-want-james-tracy-andor-his-family-members-killed/ |title=Anderson Cooper's Anti-Conspiracy Tirade |last=Tracy |first=James |date=12 January 2012 |publisher=Memory Hole |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116213650/http://memoryholeblog.com/2013/01/12/does-anderson-cooper-want-james-tracy-andor-his-family-members-killed/ |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Newtown Conspiracy Professor Thinks Anderson Cooper Is Out To Harm Him |first=Charles |last=Poladian |url=http://www.ibtimes.com/newtown-conspiracy-professor-thinks-anderson-cooper-out-harm-him-1011098 |newspaper=International Business Times |date=12 January 2013 |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116175403/http://www.ibtimes.com//newtown-conspiracy-professor-thinks-anderson-cooper-out-harm-him-1011098 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> The university fired Tracy on January 5, 2016, citing his refusal to file required paperwork related to outside employment for several years.<ref>{{cite news |last=Alvarez |first=Lizette |title=Florida Professor Who Cast Doubt on Mass Shootings Is Fired |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/us/florida-professor-who-cast-doubt-on-mass-shootings-is-fired.html |newspaper={{wipe|The New York Times}} |date=6 January 2016 |access-date=19 January 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161210185726/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/us/florida-professor-who-cast-doubt-on-mass-shootings-is-fired.html |archive-date=December 10, 2016 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

===James Fetzer===
In 2016, James Fetzer and Mike Palacek published the book ''Nobody Died at Sandy Hook'', which claimed that the event was a classified Federal Emergency Management Agency drill involving federal and local law enforcement and the media, and that the government had created false death certificates to claim there were victims. Fetzer stated that the parents displayed old photos of their real children and made up new names for the photo subjects, thereby creating non-existent younger siblings. Fetzer also claimed that several of these older-age real children, who were unnamed and billed as "Newtown's Children," sang "America the Beautiful" at the 2013 Super Bowl with Jennifer Hudson, arguing there were strong facial similarities with the victims.<ref name=Aravosis/><ref name=NBDASH>{{cite book|last1=Fetzer|first1=Jim|title=NOBODY DIED AT SANDY HOOK: It was a FEMA Drill to Promote Gun Control|date=22 October 2015|publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform |isbn=9781518650840|url=https://www.createspace.com/5806216|access-date=October 25, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151226105335/https://www.createspace.com/5806216|archive-date=December 26, 2015|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Lenny Pozner, father of victim Noah Pozner, filed a defamation lawsuit against Fetzer and Palacek. Pozner won a summary judgement from the court in June 2019. The book's publisher, Moon Rock Books, apologized to the Pozner family and agreed to take the book out of circulation at the end of June.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://nypost.com/2019/06/18/dad-of-sandy-hook-victim-wins-suit-against-conspiracy-theorists/ | title = Dad of Sandy Hook victim wins suit against conspiracy theorists | first = Amanda | last = Woods | date = June 18, 2019 | access-date = June 18, 2019 | work = The New York Post | archive-date = June 18, 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190618164319/https://nypost.com/2019/06/18/dad-of-sandy-hook-victim-wins-suit-against-conspiracy-theorists/ | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/18/nyregion/sandy-hook-victim-court-ruling.html|title=Sandy Hook Conspiracy Theorist Loses to Father of 6-Year-Old Victim Over Hoax|author1=Sharon Otterman|work={{wipe|The New York Times}}|date=June 18, 2019|access-date=June 19, 2019|archive-date=June 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190619220015/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/18/nyregion/sandy-hook-victim-court-ruling.html|url-status=live}}</ref> On October 16, 2019, a jury awarded Leonard Pozner $450,000 for defamation by James Fetzer. Fetzer announced his intention to appeal against the decision.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sandy Hook shooting: Parent awarded $450,000 for defamation |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-50074652 |work=BBC News |date=October 16, 2019 |access-date=October 17, 2019 |archive-date=October 16, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191016211612/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-50074652 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/sandy-hook-father-receive-450-000-conspiracy-theorist-jury-says-n1068026 | title = Sandy Hook father to receive $450,000 from conspiracy theorist, jury says | first = Elizabeth | last = Chuck | date = October 17, 2019 | access-date = October 17, 2019 | publisher = NBC News | archive-date = October 17, 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191017150148/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/sandy-hook-father-receive-450-000-conspiracy-theorist-jury-says-n1068026 | url-status = live }}</ref> A video similarly questioning official accounts of the shooting received several million views on [[Company:YouTube|YouTube]] within a week of its posting,<ref name=Read/> although the video has since been modified to display a disclaimer explaining that its creators "in no way claim this shooting never took place, or that people did not lose their lives."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx9GxXYKx_8&bpctr=1358374781 |title=The Sandy Hook Shooting - Fully Exposed |date=7 January 2013 |publisher=YouTube |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-date=February 18, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190218215912/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx9GxXYKx_8&bpctr=1358374781 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Other conspiracy theorists and claims===
Other sources have continued to claim that the entire event was a hoax. On September 12, 2014, during a political debate, Colorado Republican Party candidate Tom Ready (who was running for Pueblo County Commission) was accused by his opponent, Sal Pace, of posting an article on his [[Company:Facebook|Facebook]] page claiming the Sandy Hook shootings "never happened". Ready responded: "Well, there is some question of whether it happened, Sal." This was followed by more statements of the same tenor, prompting outraged yells from the audience. After allegedly receiving a death threat the next day, Ready reportedly apologized for his remarks.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.coloradoindependent.com/149252/gop-pueblo-candidate-tom-ready-not-sure-sandy-hook-shootings-happened|title=GOP Pueblo candidate Tom Ready not sure Sandy Hook shootings happened|author=John Tomasic|date=September 11, 2014|work=The Colorado Independent|access-date=3 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402142816/http://www.coloradoindependent.com/149252/gop-pueblo-candidate-tom-ready-not-sure-sandy-hook-shootings-happened|archive-date=April 2, 2015|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.chinatopix.com/articles/10596/20140915/colorado-candidate-gets-death-threat-posting-sandy-hook-massacre-hoax.htm|title=Republican Candidate Thomas Ready Gets Death Threat After Calling Sandy Hook Massacre A Hoax|author=Christl Leong|date=Sep 15, 2014|work=Chinatopix|access-date=3 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140916013333/http://www.chinatopix.com/articles/10596/20140915/colorado-candidate-gets-death-threat-posting-sandy-hook-massacre-hoax.htm|archive-date=September 16, 2014|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

Other conspiracy theorists have tried to connect the shooting to references in popular culture. Prison Planet, a website owned by British conspiracy theorist Paul Joseph Watson, mentioned that Newtown-based author Suzanne Collins wrote ''The Hunger Games'' books, in which 23 children are "ritualistically" killed, while 20 children were killed in the shooting.<ref name=predictive/> Some conspiracy theorists have referred to this as "predictive programming".<ref name=predictive>{{cite news |author=Max Read |url=http://gawker.com/5969532/the-insane-sandy-hook-conspiracy-theories-that-are-already-flooding-facebook-and-twitter |title=The Insane Sandy Hook Conspiracy Theories That Are Already Flooding Facebook and Twitter |publisher=Gawker |date=2012-12-17 |access-date=2014-05-31 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130401063105/http://gawker.com/5969532/the-insane-sandy-hook-conspiracy-theories-that-are-already-flooding-facebook-and-twitter |archive-date=April 1, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> Others pointed out that "Sandy Hook" can be seen on a map of Gotham City in the 2012 Batman film ''The Dark Knight Rises''—the New Jersey peninsula just south of New York Harbor is named Sandy Hook.<ref name=predictive/>

Several conspiracy theorists have also claimed a six-year-old victim of the shooting subsequently appeared in a photograph with President [[Biography:Barack Obama|Barack Obama]]. In fact, the child in the photograph is actually the victim's sister, wearing her deceased sister's dress.<ref name=Radford>{{cite web |url=http://www.livescience.com/26314-sandy-hook-massacre-conspiracy-theories.html |title=Why Sandy Hook Massacre Spawned Conspiracy Theories |last=Radford |first=Benjamin |date=16 January 2013 |publisher=LiveScience |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130403010209/http://www.livescience.com/26314-sandy-hook-massacre-conspiracy-theories.html |archive-date=April 3, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=Goodman/>

==Analysis==
Writing about the Sandy Hook conspiracy theories, [[Biography:Benjamin Radford|Benjamin Radford]] argued that most conspiracy theorists who allege contradictions in official accounts ignore contradictions in their own accounts, citing research from the [[Organization:University of Kent|University of Kent]] that conspiracy theorists selectively focus on or ignore particular details in order to fit their preferred narrative.<ref name=Parry>{{cite web |url=http://www.livescience.com/18171-contradicting-conspiracy-theories-mistrust.html |title=Contradictions Don't Deter Conspiracy Theorists |last=Parry |first=Wynne |date=27 January 2012 |publisher=LiveScience |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130103082641/http://www.livescience.com/18171-contradicting-conspiracy-theories-mistrust.html |archive-date=January 3, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=Radford/> The conspiracy theories have also been called evidence of "the need for a national debate on mental illness."<ref name=Goodman/>

The debunking website [[Philosophy:Snopes|Snopes]] ran an editorial debunking the "Sandy Hook Exposed" video, explaining how many of the theories make little sense, and answered many questions conspiracy theorists wanted answers to.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/guns/newtown.asp |title=Sandy Hook Exposed? |date=December 15, 2012 |publisher=Snopes.com |access-date=2017-06-13}}</ref>

==Harassment by conspiracy theorists==
Gene Rosen, a Newtown resident who was reported to have sheltered six Sandy Hook students and a bus driver in his home during the shooting, has been subject to harassment online alleging he was complicit in a government coverup,<ref>{{cite news |title=This man helped save six children, is now getting harassed for it |first=Alex |last=Seitz-Wald |url=http://www.salon.com/2013/01/15/this_man_helped_save_six_children_is_now_getting_harassed_for_it/ |newspaper=Salon |date=15 January 2013 |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116021530/http://www.salon.com/2013/01/15/this_man_helped_save_six_children_is_now_getting_harassed_for_it/ |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> among other things.<ref>{{cite news|last=Bennett-Smith|first=Meredith|title=Gene Rosen, Sandy Hook Hero, Harassed By Conspiracy Theorists Who Claim He's An Actor|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/15/gene-rosen-sandy-hook-conspiracy-theory_n_2481912.html|access-date=16 January 2013|newspaper=The Huffington Post|date=15 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116143049/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/15/gene-rosen-sandy-hook-conspiracy-theory_n_2481912.html|archive-date=January 16, 2013|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref>  Some journalists have cited such incidents as part of a "Sandy Hook Truther Movement" analogous to the 9/11 Truth movement.<ref name=Aravosis>{{cite web |url=http://americablog.com/2013/01/sandy-hook-truthers-hoax.html |title=Sandy Hook truthers claim the Newtown massacre never happened |last=Aravosis |first=John |date=15 January 2013 |publisher=Americablog |access-date=15 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116024247/http://americablog.com/2013/01/sandy-hook-truthers-hoax.html |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Sandy Hook Hero Harassed by Burgeoning Truther Movement |url=http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/01/16/sandy-hook-hero-harassed-by-burgeoning-truther-movement/ |newspaper={{wipe|Time (magazine)}} |date=16 January 2013 |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116203959/http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/01/16/sandy-hook-hero-harassed-by-burgeoning-truther-movement/ |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref name=Read>{{cite web |url=http://gawker.com/5976204/behind-the-sandy-hook-truther-conspiracy-video-that-five-million-people-have-watched-in-one-week |title=Behind the 'Sandy Hook Truther' Conspiracy Video That <s>Five</s> Eight Million People Have Watched in One Week |last=Read |first=Max |date=15 January 2013 |publisher=Gawker |access-date=16 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116212311/http://gawker.com/5976204/behind-the-sandy-hook-truther-conspiracy-video-that-five-million-people-have-watched-in-one-week |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref> A writer for the ''Calgary Herald'' reported that the movement self-identifies as "Operation Terror."<ref name=Goodman>{{cite news |title=Conspiracy theorists claim Sandy Hook School mass shooting a 'government-sponsored' hoax |first=Lee-Anne |last=Goodman |url=https://calgaryherald.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+School+mass+shooting/7823304/story.html |newspaper=Calgary Herald |date=15 January 2013 |access-date=15 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130208224116/http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Conspiracy+theorists+claim+Sandy+Hook+School+mass+shooting/7823304/story.html|archive-date=February 8, 2013}}</ref>

In May 2014, Andrew David Truelove stole a memorial sign from playgrounds dedicated to victims Grace McDonnell and Chase Kowalski.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/Sandy-Hook-Playground-Grace-McDonnell-Mystic-Stolen-Sign-Hoax-258463251.html|title=Sign Stolen from Playground Honoring Sandy Hook Victim|date=May 9, 2014|work=NBC Connecticut|access-date=3 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140603163722/http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/Sandy-Hook-Playground-Grace-McDonnell-Mystic-Stolen-Sign-Hoax-258463251.html|archive-date=June 3, 2014|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> He then went on to call the parents of Grace McDonnell, proclaiming that he stole the sign and that he believed their deaths were a "hoax".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://thedailybanter.com/2014/05/exclusive-sandy-hook-truther-comes-forward-provides-photos-of-stolen-memorial-signs-in-his-living-room/|title=EXCLUSIVE: Sandy Hook Truther Comes Forward, Provides Photos Of Stolen Memorial Signs In His Living Room|author=Chez Pazienza|date=May 22, 2014|work=The Daily Banter|access-date=3 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140703003310/http://thedailybanter.com/2014/05/exclusive-sandy-hook-truther-comes-forward-provides-photos-of-stolen-memorial-signs-in-his-living-room/|archive-date=July 3, 2014|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> He was arrested on May 30, and the signs were found in his home.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/sandy-hook-truther-caught-virginia-stolen-playground-signs-police-article-1.1811925|title=Sandy Hook 'truther' caught in Virginia with signs stolen from playgrounds built for Newtown victims: police|work=New York Daily News|author=Sasha Goldstein|date=May 30, 2014|access-date=June 17, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140602231740/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/sandy-hook-truther-caught-virginia-stolen-playground-signs-police-article-1.1811925|archive-date=June 2, 2014|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Truelove was convicted of the theft and sentenced to one year in prison.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thewesterlysun.com/news/latestnews/5355979-129/mystic-playground-sign-thief-gets-jail-time-in-virginia.html |title=Mystic playground sign thief gets jail time in Virginia |publisher=The Westerly Sun |date=2014-08-20 |access-date=2017-06-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170103165623/http://www.thewesterlysun.com/news/latestnews/5355979-129/mystic-playground-sign-thief-gets-jail-time-in-virginia.html |archive-date=January 3, 2017 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

After doing a CNN interview on the day after the shooting, Robbie Parker, the father of victim Emilie Parker, became the target of conspiracy theorists, who claimed the interview was staged.<ref name=Inquisitr>{{cite news | url= http://www.inquisitr.com/486693/sandy-hook-truthers-say-robbie-parker-video-is-evidence-of-hoax | title= Sandy Hook Truthers Say Robbie Parker Video Is Evidence Of Hoax | work= The Inquisitr News | date= January 18, 2013 | access-date= February 12, 2013 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130121141426/http://www.inquisitr.com/486693/sandy-hook-truthers-say-robbie-parker-video-is-evidence-of-hoax/ | archive-date= January 21, 2013 | url-status= live | df= mdy-all }} Retrieved 2014-05-31.</ref> Parker has been attacked by theorists who believe he is a "[[Unsolved:Crisis actor|crisis actor]]" and was "getting into character" before going on CNN to grieve over the loss of his child.<ref name=Inquisitr /><!-- 3 May 2015 -->

In April 2016, Matthew Mills, a man from Brooklyn, accepted a plea agreement with prosecutors on one count of interfering with police arising from an incident in November 2015, when Mills angrily approached the sister of murdered teacher Victoria Soto&mdash;who is regarded as a heroine for her attempt to protect her students from the shooter in the Sandy Hook attack&mdash;shoved a photograph in her face, "and began angrily charging that not only did the Sandy Hook tragedy not take place, but that Victoria Soto never existed."<ref name="Tepfer">Daniel Tepfer, [http://www.ctpost.com/policereports/article/Sandy-Hook-truther-gets-suspended-sentence-7255482.php Sandy Hook 'truther' gets suspended sentence] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160419094019/http://www.ctpost.com/policereports/article/Sandy-Hook-truther-gets-suspended-sentence-7255482.php |date=April 19, 2016 }}, ''Connecticut Post'' (April 18, 2016).</ref><ref name=DailyNews>{{cite news| url= http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/brooklyn-man-harassed-family-slain-newtown-teacher-article-1.2430266| first1= Joseph| last1= Stepansky| first2= Nancy| last2= Dillon| title= Brooklyn man harassed family of slain Newtown teacher| work= New York Daily News| date= November 11, 2015| access-date= June 4, 2016| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160518135652/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/brooklyn-man-harassed-family-slain-newtown-teacher-article-1.2430266| archive-date= May 18, 2016| url-status= live| df= mdy-all}}</ref> Mills entered an ''Alford'' plea and was thus found guilty; he was given a suspended sentence of one year in jail and two years' probation.<ref name="Tepfer"/>

In December 2016, Lucy Richards, a woman from Tampa, was charged with four counts of transmitting threats in interstate commerce for sending death threats to Lenny Pozner, whose son Noah was the youngest of 20 children murdered.<ref name=NewYorkTimes>{{cite news| url= https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/07/us/florida-woman-is-charged-with-threatening-sandy-hook-parent.html| first1= Frances| last1= Robles| title= Florida Woman Is Charged With Threatening Sandy Hook Parent| work= {{wipe|New York Times}}| date= December 7, 2016| access-date= March 3, 2017| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170308201745/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/07/us/florida-woman-is-charged-with-threatening-sandy-hook-parent.html| archive-date= March 8, 2017| url-status= live| df= mdy-all}}</ref><ref name="Guns.com 8 December 2016">{{cite web| url= http://www.guns.com/2016/12/08/conspiracy-theorist-charged-for-threatening-parent-of-sandy-hook-victim/| last= Cruz| first= Jennifer| title= Sandy Hook truther charged for threatening victim's parent| date= 8 December 2016| website= guns.com| access-date= 2 April 2017| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170403111115/http://www.guns.com/2016/12/08/conspiracy-theorist-charged-for-threatening-parent-of-sandy-hook-victim/| archive-date= April 3, 2017| url-status= live| df= mdy-all}}</ref> Pozner has been particularly targeted by Internet trolls and conspiracy theorists because he has vocally fought back against them.<ref>Mike Wendling, [https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-39194035 Sandy Hook to Trump: 'Help us stop conspiracy theorists'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180906042354/https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-39194035 |date=September 6, 2018 }}, BBC News (April 2, 2017).</ref> Richards had been expected to plead guilty to one count of transmitting threats, with both the prosecution and defense to recommend a sentence of probation and house arrest. However, in March 2017, Richards&mdash;who was free on bond&mdash;failed to show up to court for a change-of-plea hearing and sentencing. An arrest warrant was issued, Richards' bond was revoked, and she was soon apprehended.<ref>Paula McMahon, [http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-pn-sandy-hook-lucy-richards-arrest-20170403-story.html Woman accused of threatening Sandy Hook parent jailed after she was a no-show for court] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170410050934/http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-pn-sandy-hook-lucy-richards-arrest-20170403-story.html |date=April 10, 2017 }}, ''South Florida Sun-Sentinel'' (April 3, 2017).</ref>  On June 7, 2017, Richards was sentenced to five months' imprisonment.<ref>{{cite news|title=Florida woman sentenced for threatening parent of Sandy Hook victim|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-florida-crime-sandyhook-idUSKBN18Y2BY|date=8 June 2017|work=Reuters|access-date=July 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170702101530/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-florida-crime-sandyhook-idUSKBN18Y2BY|archive-date=July 2, 2017|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref>

Lenny Pozner, the father of Sandy Hook victim Noah Pozner, founded an organization called the HONR Network, which takes legal action against harassers of Sandy Hook survivors and families.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.honr.com/about.html |title=About Us - HONR Network &#124; Against the Abusers &#124; Awareness |publisher=Honr.com |date=2013-05-26 |access-date=2017-06-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160315074718/http://honr.com/about.html |archive-date=March 15, 2016 |url-status=live |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

Wolfgang Halbig, a past contributor to ''InfoWars'', was arrested in January 2020 for unauthorized possession of personal information of Lenny Pozner. Halbig had illegally obtained Pozner's private information and attempted to [[Doxing|dox]] Pozner by sending those to a long list of recipients. Under Florida law, unauthorized possession of such information carries a maximum prison term of one year.<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/27/us/politics/sandy-hook-hoaxer-arrest.html | title = A Notorious Sandy Hook Tormentor Is Arrested in Florida | first = Elizabeth | last = Williamson | date = January 27, 2020 | access-date = January 27, 2020 | work = {{wipe|The New York Times}} | archive-date = January 27, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200127184019/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/27/us/politics/sandy-hook-hoaxer-arrest.html | url-status = live }}</ref>

==See also==
*Gun politics in the United States
*[[Unsolved:List of conspiracy theories|List of conspiracy theories]]
*Reactions to the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting

==References==
{{reflist}}


[[Category:Death conspiracy theories]]
[[Category:Pseudohistory]]
[[Category:Denialism]]

{{Sourceattribution|Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting conspiracy theories}}