meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
What Next | Daily News and Analysis

The Path to the Sandy Hook Settlement

What Next | Daily News and Analysis

Slate Podcasts

Daily News, News, News Commentary

4.3 • 2.4K Ratings

🗓️ 22 February 2022

⏱️ 28 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Last week, the Remington Arms Company reached a $73 million dollar settlement with the families of nine victims killed in the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre—the largest payout by a gun manufacturer in a mass shooting case. 


Federal law protects manufacturers from a broad swath of liability in civilian shootings, so the families’ legal team took an interesting tack: they sued under Connecticut’s consumer protection laws and exposed the reckless way Remington marketed their weapons. 


Guest: @NicoleHockley is co-founder and CEO of Sandy Hook Promise Foundation.


If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get benefits like zero ads on any Slate podcast, bonus episodes of shows like Slow Burn and Dear Prudence—and you’ll be supporting the work we do here on What Next. Sign up now at slate.com/whatnextplus to help support our work.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

There's gift I've ever received has to be a bike when I was younger, a pedal bike.

0:07.0

It was a sort of slick little road bike and I remember it was all like it was so it was all wrapped up

0:12.7

but it was so obvious what it was obviously because nothing shaped like a bike and I had a little ribbon on it

0:16.4

and I was so guest. For that was a life changer and I'm still sort of big on cycling around my area now

0:21.6

so for that one change me a little.

0:23.8

Joy in every sip with red cups now back at Starbucks.

0:36.4

Nicole Hawkely has had to get really comfortable talking about the worst day of her life.

0:42.6

It's the day her son Dylan was found dead,

0:45.2

cradled in the arms of his favorite school aid. She was dead too.

0:50.5

Both were shot at Sandy Hook Elementary School. It was December 14th 2012.

0:56.5

Nicole calls it 1214.

0:59.5

I don't know if that's how all the families refer to it. I just know in my family that's how we refer to it as a kind of like 9-11.

1:08.5

And when people say 9-11 you know what they're talking about and I think when you say 1214 a lot of people know what you're to or if you mention Newtown or Sandy Hook people go there in their minds immediately.

1:22.5

Part of the reason this tragedy is so well known is because of what Nicole did next.

1:31.5

Within days she co-founded an advocacy organization. She called it Sandy Hook Promise.

1:37.5

She began lobbying for gun reform and then she sued. Specifically she and eight other Sandy Hook families sued Remington Arms,

1:46.5

the maker of the AR-15 style weapon used in the Newtown massacre.

1:51.5

And just last week they won a 73 million dollar settlement in this case.

1:57.5

When the Sandy Hook families came to see us it was about nine years ago and it was in the...

2:04.5

The lawyers behind the suit and the families they held this remarkable two hour press conference announcing the decision.

2:12.5

They showed pictures of the victims. They talked about what their last days alive were like. It was raw.

2:18.5

I knew enough to never tell a client. Oh yeah we got this no problem. And I also thought wow this is going to be an enormous effort.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Slate Podcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Slate Podcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.