US shooter's relatives express 'heartfelt sorrow'

Family says it’s trying to understand ‘tremendous loss’

KINGSTON, New Hampshire (AP) — Relatives of a Connecticut woman fatally shot by her son before he killed 26 people at a school then killed himself say in a statement they share the grief of the Newtown community and the nation.

A sheriff in New Hampshire, where Nancy Lanza once lived, read the statement Saturday, saying the family is trying to understand “the tremendous loss.” Rockingham County Sheriff Michael Downing said Lanza’s brother James Champion, a retired police captain in New Hampshire, and other relatives express their “heartfelt sorrow.” Another officer said, “The whole family is traumatized by this event.”

Champion would not discuss what might have triggered his nephew to go on the shooting spree.

Nancy Lanza’s family described her as kind and loving. She was once a stockbroker for John Hancock in Boston.