NEWTOWN, CONN. — State police officials said Thursday that it will take months to determine why Adam Lanza massacred students and staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School, as investigators struggle to assess his mental state prior to the shootings.
In the initial hours after the killing spree one week ago, investigators said they had uncovered “good evidence” that would provide clues into what prompted Lanza’s rampage.
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But since then, police officials have become more guarded, bracing the public for a lengthy investigation that will stretch well into the new year. The extended investigation means Lanza’s motive may not be known before President Obama’s push for new gun control regulations.
Investigators are struggling to uncover clues in the case as relatives of the victims are burying the dead, which include the shooter’s mother. On Thursday afternoon, 25 relatives gathered in New Hampshire to remember Nancy Lanza, who was shot multiple times in the head by her son before he killed 26 people, and then took his own life, at the elementary school.
Donald W. Briggs, chief of the Kingston Police Department in Nancy Lanza’s hometown in New Hampshire, said the family will determine at a later date where to place her cremated remains.
Adam Lanza’s body remains in the custody of the Connecticut Medical Examiner’s Office, as officials piece together the final weeks of his life.
“At some later date, there will be information about him,” Briggs said.
Investigators’ initial optimism for quickly identifying a motive in the case dimmed as it became apparent that Lanza had been reclusive, leaving few witnesses who knew him well.
Police also are trying to recover information from a computer hard drive that was found smashed in the home he shared with his mother.
“We don’t have any smoking gun to say this is why it occurred, at least not yet,” said J. Paul Vance, a Connecticut State Police spokesman. “We are moving forward and working with our partners, and as you can assume with multiple deaths, we are looking at several months before we really have our arms wrapped around this.”
Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. traveled to Newtown on Thursday to meet with first responders and law enforcement officials. Officials declined to characterize the nature of the meetings.
Holder’s visit comes as the Obama administration frames its response to the Dec. 14 shootings, including pushing for new gun-control measures next year.
Before visiting Newtown, Holder attended a meeting with Vice President Biden and other senior administration officials to begin developing proposals that Obama plans to submit to Congress as early as next month.
“The president is absolutely committed to keeping his promise that we will act,” said Biden, who is heading the working group. He said that Obama will push for a ban on assault weapons and added, “We have to have a comprehensive way in which to respond to the mass murder of our children that we saw in Connecticut.”
House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) promised Thursday to “take under advisement” any suggestions to curb gun violence put forward by the Biden commission.
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