HARTFORD, Conn. (Legal Newsline) - Connecticut Attorney General George Jepsen and Consumer Protection Commissioner William Rubenstein released information Tuesday collected from dozens of charities related to the shooting deaths at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Jepsen and Rubenstein collected the information through a voluntary request sent on March 28 to 69 charities registered with the Department of Consumer Protection or publicly identified as having accepted donations related to the shootings. The 43 charities that responded to the request by noon on Monday have collected close to $20.4 million and distributed approximately $2.9 million.
The charitable purposes listed by the groups include paying for the construction of a physical memorial to those lost, providing direct financial support or other assistance to the 26 families who lost loved ones, creating scholarships and an endowment to support Newtown's children and youth, supporting and inspiring acts of kindness and purchasing memorial trees.
The shootings occurred Dec. 12 at Sandy Hook Elementary. Twenty children and six adults were killed.
"This request was an initial step to provide information to the public, Newtown community and other charitable organizations trying to meet the needs of those affected by this tragedy," Jepsen said. "My office will be following up with the charities that did not respond."
The requests for information asked the charities about the dollar amount of any pledges to date, the purposes for which the money was collected and general information about the charities themselves. Rubenstein said the offices may reach out in the future to determine how the donations were spent and what steps were taken to prevent misuse.
The public information is available on Jepsen's website and the Consumer Protection websites as a public service. The postings do not represent an endorsement of any charity by the agencies or the state.
Conn. AG posts info from Sandy Hook charities
