15-Year-Old Female Student Identified As Wisconsin School Shooting Suspect—Here’s What We Know

17 Dec 2024 by Siladitya Ray · Forbes

Topline

Law enforcement authorities identified a 15-year-old female student as the suspected shooter who killed at least two people and injured six others in a private Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday before dying from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to police.

Students are escorted from a church next to the Abundant Life Christian School and loaded on busses ... [+] to be taken to a reunification center in Madison, Wisconsin.Getty Images

Key Facts

According to Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes, the alleged shooter Natalie Rupnow, who went by the name Samantha, was a student at Abundant Life Christian School—where the incident took place.

At least two people, another student and a teacher, were killed by the shooter and six others were injured—including two students who suffered life-threatening injuries and remain in critical condition.

Rupnow was also pronounced dead while being transported to the hospital, from what police believe was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Barnes told reporters in a late evening press conference that a second-grade student called 911 to report the shooting, adding “I’m going to let that soak in for a moment.”

Police recovered the handgun that was used in the shooting and said the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) was working with them to learn how the shooter may have acquired the weapon.

What Do The Police Know About Natalie Rupnow?

Police have not yet established a motive for the suspected shooter’s action, but they interviewed members of her family. Barnes said the suspect’s father is cooperating with the investigation as they try to learn what he may or may not have known. Police also searched Rupnow’s home in Madison. Barnes said police are aware of an alleged online manifesto linked to the shooter but have so far been unable to confirm its authenticity. “We’re certainly aware that it’s been posted and the person who posted it, alleged to have a connection with the victim,” he said, adding the the information has been shared with the FBI.

Crucial Quote

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers expressed his condolences to the victims: “There are no words to describe the devastation and heartbreak we feel today after the school shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison this morning.” The statement added: “As a father, a grandfather, and as governor, it is unthinkable that a kid or an educator might wake up and go to school one morning and never come home. This should never happen, and I will never accept this as a foregone reality or stop working to change it.”

Big Number

323. That’s how many school shootings have been recorded so far in 2024, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database. This is the second-highest number of school shootings recorded in a single year on the database, eclipsed only by 2023’s 349 shootings.

Surprising Fact

Of all the school shootings in 2024 recorded by the K-12 School Shooting Database, only nine involved female shooters.