His mother WASN'T a teacher at the school after all?

[senseandsensibility]

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/2012/12/nancy_lanza_not_a_teacher.php?ref=fpblg
If true, this is important. I'm a teacher, and yesterday after school I was approached by a distraught parent. She was devastated by the shootings, and seemed very concerned that a teacher's son was the suspect.

If she was not a teacher at the school, this needs to be corrected ASAP. As Josh Marshall, writes, there have been questions about this for hours now, yet mainstream sources are STILL identifying her as a kindergarten teacher at that school.

This fact matters because facts matter. But I know from experience that the idea that it was the teacher's son who did this adds a new layer of terror to the situation for parents.

Also, as a teacher for nearly thirty years, I found it very strange that a credentialed teacher would keep so many high powered weapons (legal or not) in a home with an unbalanced son. It just didn't ring true to me. Teachers aren't perfect, but I was shocked to hear that.

Again, it matters, and if she was not a teacher at the school it needs to be corrected. Even if a correction is made, ninety percent of the population will always believe that it was the teacher's son who did it. Once something like this gets into the public's mind, it's in there for good.

[proud2BlibKansan]

1. No. She was not.

School district released a statement early this morning. She had no relationship with the school.

[senseandsensibility]

2. No relationship?

Was she even a teacher? I find this a very strange mistake for so many news outlets to make. What was it based on?

[proud2BlibKansan]

3. She was reportedly an ex-wife with a healthy alimony settlement

Her son may have gone to school there. But the district says she was not an employee.

[senseandsensibility]

6. Do you have a link for that?

I'm not doubting you, but I have would love to read more about this. I haven't seen that in my searches. The reporting on this particular aspect of the case is appalling IMO.

[undeterred]

23. I think its just hard to get good information in a crisis.

Its hard to satisfy the media when the #1 priority still has to be the investigation. From the news conference this morning it appears that there is an adult survivor who was hospitalized and will be able to tell the police what happened inside the school yesterday... otherwise everyone was killed.

[underpants]

25. Link - NY Daily News so you know the source

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021990374

Also
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021989843

[senseandsensibility]

29. Thanks!

eom

[proud2BlibKansan]

4. here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021990695

[jberryhill]

30. Was that limited to the present tense?

According to one report which included extensive information about the divorce, alimony, etc. she had been a teacher there up until some years ago when she left to take care of Adam full time.

Was the statement in response to reports that she is currently a teacher, or did the statement indicate that she had not been one at some prior time?

[proud2BlibKansan]

35. I saw that too.

All i have is a statement from the school district saying she was not an employee. Don't know if she used to be or not.

[Fla Dem]

36. ABC reported she was once a classroom aide. Info was from ex sister-in law. n/t

[Lone_Star_Dem]

5. The investigators said yesterday they could find no proof she was.

It appears to have all come from on person (allegedly a parent) saying they thought maybe she was a substitute teacher there.

[senseandsensibility]

8. Well, I read many reports yesterday from "reliable" news sources

that called her a kindergarten teacher at that school, not a substitute. Really appalling reporting.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

13. Yeah, so did I.

One outlet would hear a rumor and state it as fact. Then the rest would grab it up and make the same claim. No vetting of the information whatsoever. Now a lot of people are still spreading fabrications as fact. It's as if the media is no more trustworthy than a local small town gossip.

[undeterred]

7. I heard she was a former teacher, but not at that school.

The shooter was a former student at the school.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

9. He was, still it's K-4.

He wouldn't have went there for 11 years or so now. Not saying that's not the connection, but damn.

[GreenPartyVoter]

10. So why was she there?

[MrsBrady]

12. she wasn't at the school

that was mis-reported.

I think she's dead at home, but I don't think they've said who's dead at her house yet.
I'm not even sure if she's dead or not, really.

This is the problem...much mis-information. I've been reading through
current news articles to try to get some more accurate information.

[GreenPartyVoter]

17. I heard there was a dead brother at home, but that was yesterday's confused reporting.

[MrsBrady]

19. I don't think any of that

has been confirmed.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

20. Heard that too. It's not true.

Lots of bad reporting by major outlets yesterday.

He killed his mother at home. His brother lived in NJ, not CT. He was at work at the time of the shooting. He's fine.

[MrsBrady]

15. update, ok I found this

update: on edit...bad info, never mind...
and it was ABC, also

[WorseBeforeBetter]

16. I heard on either ABC or CBS last night that she was a volunteer teacher's aide.

(This is the first I'm tuning in today, so I'm not aware of any updates...)

[MrsBrady]

18. she had no connection with the school

bad info yesterday.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

39. "Classroom aide" according to former sister-in-law.

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/adam-lanzas-mom-pulled-school-relative/story?id=17985433

But I'm not accepting anything as gospel. Other than that we've got huge fucking problems in this country, on many different levels.

[Schema Thing]

11. You should ALWAYS assume that most everything you hear about a disaster, is wrong, the first time...

you hear it, for at least the first 24 hours.

[underpants]

14. Forced his way in - no school work by her - Adam has altercation with 4 school staff the day before,

3 of the 4 staff members were murdered yesterday
The mother took her sons target shooting
the father left the home to her in the divorce and $240K/year alimony
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021989843

[GreenPartyVoter]

21. There was an altercation the day before? In hindsight I guess asking the cops to

keep an eye out would have been a good idea, but who knew, right?

[underpants]

22. Hindsight 20/20

Yeah but people tend not to think that anything will happen. I mean no one could really consider that THAT would have happened. I still can't believe it myself and I know it happened.

[senseandsensibility]

24. Yes, it would depend on what kind of altercation.

If it was violent, of course police would have been called. Verbal? It depends. With so few facts, we can't really judge.

[GreenPartyVoter]

26. Exactly, especially since some of the staff probably knew him as a child and didn't

see him as that kind of threat.

[underpants]

28. You have probably read the two profiles of him that I have

everyone in that town (of 27,000) seemed to know each other.

He was either seen as a brilliant but troubled rich kid or a whackjob-accident-waiting-to-happen rich kid

I have read both.

[HooptieWagon]

27. She was a substitute teacher, not at school at the time.

Her body was discovered at home. This was from a NYT article reprinted in my local paper today, and contradicts reports from yesterday that she was killed in a classroom at the school.

[senseandsensibility]

31. I don't even think she was a substitute teacher.

But I guess we will see as facts emerge.

[John2]

33. She is

a victim, but I think she might have been an extremist. That is my opinion as more information comes in. Her son had no regards for life and she taught him to shoot.

[HooptieWagon]

34. I was just relaying information from today's paper.

There may be more corrections and clarifications in over the next couple days.

[malaise]

32. Just heard that too

M$Greedia is really unprofessional.

[jsr]

37. Journalism took a vacation yesterday

Much of what was reported and repeated ad nauseam yesterday - in print and on TV - was speculative bullshit.

[FarCenter]

38. According to her sister-in-law, she was formerly a classroom aide at the school

Marsha Lanza, who is Adam's aunt and Nancy's ex-sister-in-law, called her former sister-in-law an "awesome ... giving person." She also told Evelyn Holmes of ABC-owned-and-operated station WLS in Chicago that Nancy had once been a classroom aide at the Sandy Hook school.

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/adam-lanzas-mom-pulled-school-relative/story?id=17985433

This may not have been a paid position or it may have been billed through a temp agency so the school may not have a payroll record of her.