Midday Roundup: Newtown in the news

Warrants released. Adam Lanza, the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooter, had a collection of weapons and ammunition in his car and at his home, in addition to what he used in the school massacre. According to warrants unsealed today, police officers found a 12-gague shotgun and two magazines containing 70 rounds of ammunition in Lanza’s Honda Civic. At his house, officers discovered a gun locker, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, knives, samurai swords, and a military-style uniform, among other items. Danbury State’s Attorney Stephen Sedensky said the shooter’s mother, Nancy Lanza, who was killed by her son in their home, apparently purchased the guns used in the shooting for her son.

Shamer in chief. In remarks from the White House today, President Obama surrounded himself with mothers of shooting victims, as he attempted to pressure and shame Congress into passing gun control legislation that’s making its way to the Senate floor. “Shame on us if we’ve forgotten,” the president said of the Sandy Hook Elementary shootings. “I haven't forgotten those kids. Shame on us if we’ve forgotten.” Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, criticized Obama for exploiting the Newtown tragedy: “The proposals the president is calling for Congress to pass would primarily serve to reduce the constitutionally protected rights of law-abiding citizens while having little or no effect on violent crime. … It is deeply unfortunate that he continues to use the tragedy at Newtown as a backdrop for pushing legislation that would have done nothing to prevent that horrible crime.”

No panic. For the first time in two weeks, banks reopened in Cyprus. In an effort to avoid panic, the government limited withdrawals to €300 ($383), and customers responded favorably and lines were short. “We expected much more people,” a bank manager in Nicosia told Bloomberg News. “Fortunately there are only some people who needed cash for the day, but customers reacted fantastically. We expected some people to be more aggravated.”

Mandela hospitalized. Former South African President Nelson Mandela has been hospitalized with a lung infection but has been responding “positively” to treatment, according to the South African government. “We appeal to the people of South Africa and the world to pray for our beloved Madiba and his family and to keep them in their thoughts,” South African President Jacob Zuma said in a statement.