Conn. Rep. Esty named vice chair of gun task force

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut's newly minted 5th District congresswoman has been appointed vice chairwoman of a congressional task force on gun violence prevention.

U.S. Rep. Elizabeth Esty was named Friday as one of 12 vice chairs to serve on the panel, charged with identifying the best policies for reducing and preventing gun violence.

Esty's western Connecticut district includes Newtown, site of the deadly Sandy Hook Elementary School mass shooting on Dec. 14.

Esty said she feels "a special responsibility to that community and to the parents who have suffered such an unimaginable horror." Esty said the loss of innocent life seen in Newtown and elsewhere cannot be allowed to continue.

A gunman killed his mother at the home they shared before shooting 20 first graders and six staff. He committed suicide as police arrived.