Sandy Hook a decade on: How the AR-15 became ‘America’s Rifle’
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 14 December 2022
⏱️ 37 minutes
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Summary
It’s been 10 years since America’s deadliest mass shooting in an elementary (primary) school. In the years since, the weapon used - the AR-15 - has also been deployed in some of the decade’s most horrifying shootings. So how did the AR-15 rifle become the weapon of choice for mass shooters?
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I'm historian Lucy Wesley, and I'm happy to tell you that my Sunday time's best-selling |
| 0:05.1 | biography of Agatha Christie is out now in paperback. |
| 0:09.2 | In it, I've uncovered the clues to reveal a remarkable life. |
| 0:15.0 | Although Agatha Christie would pretend to be just a quiet housewife, she was in fact |
| 0:20.3 | a maverick, an innovator, a game-changer. |
| 0:24.5 | Her sister's non-fiction book of the month, Agatha Christie, find it in store or online. |
| 0:34.5 | A warning before you go on, this episode contains descriptions of death and injury that some |
| 0:39.5 | listeners might find upsetting. |
| 0:46.8 | In 1996, in the UK, we had Dunblane. |
| 0:50.8 | In the US, they've had several Dunblanes, and today marks 10 years since Sandy Hook, |
| 0:56.6 | the deadliest shooting in a primary-level school in US history. |
| 1:00.7 | These 27 dead, 20 children, 7 adults, including the principal. |
| 1:05.9 | The majority of those who died today were children. |
| 1:11.3 | Beautiful little kids between the ages of 5 and 10 years old. |
| 1:20.2 | In the decade since, mass shootings have continued to hit the top of the news bulletins and |
| 1:25.1 | some of the most terrible have all had something in common. |
| 1:29.2 | Variations of the AR-15 were used at a Buffalo supermarket at a Texas Wal-Mart in 2019, |
| 1:36.5 | a Florida high school in 2018, a Texas church and a Las Vegas concert in 2017 and Sandy Hook |
| 1:44.5 | Elementary School in 2012. |
| 1:50.2 | Killers have continued to get hold of these AR-15 style assault weapons, before turning |
| 1:59.2 | them on their fellow citizens and fellow pupils. |
| 2:02.7 | Luke always be young, because he never has to worry about taking SATs, because he never |
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