The Sandy Hook settlement

How some of the families of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting reached a settlement with Remington Arms nearly a decade after the massacre. Plus, why a convoy of semi-trucks descended on downtown Ottawa three weeks ago — and never left.

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When the families of nine of the victims of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School began their lawsuit against the gunmaker of the Bushmaster AR-15-style rifle, their goal was to spare other families the pain that had upended their own lives. 

On Tuesday, the victims’ families marked a victory in that effort with the announcement of a $73 million settlement with Remington Arms, which manufactures the Bushmaster. 

“This lawsuit is really being viewed as an opening, an example of what is possible,” says reporter Kim Bellware. “But also, lawyers are saying this should be a wake-up call for other people who are in business with gun manufacturers … to let them know that these gun companies can’t just operate how they want, and that being in business with companies like this can be very expensive.” 

Later in the show, we take you to Ottawa, where thousands of demonstrators in semi-trucks have been parked in downtown for weeks in protest of vaccine mandates. They also blocked the Ambassador Bridge, a key crossing into the United States, wreaking economic havoc on both countries.

Now their demands have grown to include lifting all pandemic restrictions – and authorities say some have ties to extremist groups. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has invoked Canada’s Emergencies Act for the first time in the country’s history in an attempt to restore order. 

Post reporter Amanda Coletta is in Ottawa watching the protests unfold.