Senator Sullivan spoke on personal privilege to tell colleagues about the ongoing experience of grief after her son Alex was killed in the Aurora Theater "with 11 others." "Grief doesn't take an interim," she said, and recounted a recent moment when her granddaughter, about to turn 4, asked whether her uncle Alex was alive. "He said, no. Alex, your uncle Alex isn't alive. Something bad happened and he died," Sullivan said, describing how the child's realization prompted the senator to speak.

Sullivan said the family has shown the child pictures of Alex and that the child still plays with a train set and a toy horse connected to him. The senator said she raised the matter so that the family can frame the explanation for the child rather than having it come from others or media references that include Alex's name and images.

The remarks were offered during the announcements portion of the session under a request for a moment of personal privilege; the floor record does not show a policy action tied to the statement.