Police have confirmed that a 15-year-old girl is responsible for a shooting at a Christian school in Wisconsin, which left a teacher and a student dead and several others injured before she took her own life.
The shooter was identified as Abundant Life Christian School student Natalie Rubino at a news conference Monday evening. Police say the attacker also used the first name Samantha.
Madison Police Chief Shawn Barnes told reporters that Robinau was found with a gunshot wound when officers arrived at the school, and he died on his way to the hospital.
Students on a bus as they leave the shelter after a shooting at Abundant Life Christian School, Monday, December 16, 2024.
Maury Gash/Associated Press
Six others were injured after fire was opened in a mixed classroom, including two students who are still in critical condition. A teacher and three other students were taken to hospital with less serious injuries, and two of them were released Monday evening.
Police said it was a second-grader who called 911, prompting dozens of police officers to rush to the scene.
Barbara Wears, director of elementary and school relations at Abundant Life Christian School, told The Associated Press that the students “They handled themselves wonderfully“.
When a school practices safety procedures, which faculty had done just before the school year, leaders always announce it’s just a drill, she said. This did not happen on Monday.
“When they heard, ‘Lockdown, lockdown,’ they did it He knew it was realshe said.
The 911 call came just before 11 a.m. Monday. First responders were training just five kilometers away and rushed to the scene for an actual emergency, arriving at the school three minutes later.
Emergency vehicles are parked outside Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, where multiple injuries were reported after a shooting, Monday, December 16, 2024.
Scott Bauer/Associated Press
Investigators believe the shooter used a 9 mm handgun, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation. Police confirmed that they found a gun at the scene.
On Tuesday, police said they were looking into online posts and Possible statement Behind him is the shooter. They said her motive remains unclear, and they are trying to determine whether the attacker targeted the teacher and student who were killed during Monday’s shooting.
“We were made aware of the statement, if you want to call it that, or some type of message that was posted by someone claiming to be her boyfriend. We haven’t been able to locate that person yet, but that’s something we’ll be working on today,” Barnes told CNN.
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“We will also look into her traces – if she has a computer or a mobile phone – to see if there are any transmissions between her and someone else.”
Barnes said Robinau’s family is cooperating with the investigation.
President Joe Biden said the shooting was “shocking and unconscionable,” and called on lawmakers to act immediately on legislation that could prevent further acts of gun violence.
Emergency vehicles are parked outside Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, where multiple injuries were reported after a shooting, Monday, December 16, 2024.
Scott Bauer/Associated Press
According to the Washington Post database, school shootings by women and girls are extremely rare; Since 1999, Only nine attacks It happened at the hands of women.
School shootings have become a horrific routine in the United States, with 322 of them occurring this year, according to a report published by the British Daily Mail. K-12 school shooting database A website that tracks any type of shooting that occurs on school property, including mass shootings, domestic violence, shootings at sports games and after-hours school events, suicides, fights that escalate into shootings, and accidents.
A resident places some flowers outside Abundant Life Christian School on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2024, in Madison, Wisconsin, after a shooting on Monday.
Maury Gash/Associated Press
That’s the second-highest total in any year since 1966, according to that database — surpassed only by last year’s total of 349 shootings.
Polls show that American voters favor stronger background checks for gun buyers, temporary restrictions on people in crisis, and more safety requirements for storing guns in homes with children. However, political leaders have largely refused to act, citing US constitutional protections for gun owners.
— With files from Reuters and The Associated Press
&Copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
