News

Jewish Child Shot 11 Times in Newtown Rampage

Noah Pozner, 6, Dies in Spree, Twin Sister Escapes

By Forward Staff

At least one of the 20 children killed in the Newtown school massacre was a 6-year-old Jewish boy, whose twin sister and older sibling escaped the rampage at the Sandy Hook School.

Noah Pozner was identified by the coroner as the youngest of the victims. He was shot 11 times.

Rabbi Shaul Praver of Adath Israel said he had spent time with Veronika Pozner, the mother of little Noah.

“She said that she didn’t know how she was going to go on, and we encouraged her to focus on her other four children that need her and not to try to plan out the rest of her life, just take a deep breath right now,” Praver said.

The slain boy’s uncle, Arthur Pozner, of Brooklyn, told Newsday that the family moved from New York to idyllic Connecticut because they believed it was safer. They targeted Newtown for its top-rated public schools.

“Extremely, extremely mature. When I was his age, I was not like him,” Arthur Pozner said. “Very well brought up. Extremely bright. Extremely bright.”

Another victim, Ben Wheeler, was also identified as being Jewish by some Israeli news outlets. His father David is a writer and performer with the Flagpole Shakespeare Repertory Theater, Newsday reported.

Noah Pozner’s twin sister and 8-year-old sister were also students at the school, but escaped unhurt.

“At this stage, two out of three survived … That’s sad,” Arthur Pozner told Newsday. “The reason they moved to that area is because they did not consider any school in New York State on the same level – that’s one of the reasons they moved, for safety and education.”