A 15-year-old girl, who police identified as Natalie Rupnow, killed a teacher and fellow student after opening fire on a K-12 school in Madison, Wisconsin.
Police responded to reports of an active shooter at Abundant Life Christian School just before 11 a.m. on Monday morning and entered the building immediately upon arrival.
Rupnow – who went by “Samantha” – was pronounced dead when police arrived at the scene of a suspected self-inflicted gunshot wound, Madison Police Department Chief Shon Barnes said.
Six others have been left injured, including two left two in critical condition with life-threatening injuries. Her motive remains unclear.
A second-grade student dialled 911 to report the shooting, police said Monday. Authorities found a handgun at the scene. Rupnow’s family is cooperating with police, the chief said.
Joe Biden, who was briefed on the school shooting on Monday, said: “It’s shocking and unconscionable. We need Congress to act. Now... Jill and I are praying for all the victims today, including the teacher and teenage student who were killed and those who sustained injuries.”
A candlelight vigil is scheduled for Tuesday evening as Madison reels from the attack.
Key points
- Natalie Rupnow, 15, identified as Madison shooting suspect
- Three people have died, including the suspected shooter
- Second-grader called 911 in Madison shooting
- Suspected shooter used a handgun, police say
- Madison police tell public to ‘leave aside biases’ and ‘don’t know’ if shooter was transgender
Police expected to announce new information in Madison shooting on Tuesday afternoon
09:30
Josh Marcus
Madison, Wisconsin, police are expected to provide a public update on the investigation into a mass shooting on Monday that injured six and left three people dead, including the shooter.
The press conference is slated for 1 p.m. local time.
Key pieces of information about the shooting are not yet public, including the names of the victims.
In pictures: Police swarm the Abundant Life Christian School
09:10
James Liddell
Candlelight vigil to be held on Tuesday evening
08:50
James Liddell
A candlelight vigil is scheduled for Tuesday night as Madison reels from the heinous attack on the Abundant Life Christian School.
The city mayor and education officials expected to attend, according to WMTV.
Police asked the local community to delay holding vigils on Monday at the school, which remains an active crime scene. Law enforcement officials monitored the school overnight.
When a mass shooting becomes a social media rumor
08:30
Josh Marcus
At multiple times in the hours after the Madison shooting, officials have warned members of the public to disregard the social media rumor mill, an increasing fact of life after high-profile instances of violence in America.
First, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes reminded members of the public of a bit of basic media literacy, telling them to only get their information about the shooting from trusted government and media sources, as online speculation about the incident runs rampant.
“Social media, quite frankly, is something I can’t control,” he said at a press conference.
“If you’re listening to this and you’re at home or thinking about reposting something that did not come from someone in this room, a trusted and respected journalist, please don’t do that,” he added. “It does help erode the trust in this process, and that’s all we have.”
Barnes said such rumors could “fan the flames” at a time when “we need to come together and not be divided by anything.”
Later, as online commentators, particularly those on the right, engaged in unverified speculation the shooter was trasgender, Barnes had a more pointed comment.
“I dont think that whatever happened today has anything to do with how she, or he, or they may have wanted to identify,” Barnes said. “I wish people would kind of leave their own personal biases out of this. We have people who have yet another school shooting in Madison. That’s where my focus will be for the very near future.”
Catch up: the latest details on the Madison shooting
07:30
Josh Marcus
Here’s what you need to know:
Mother furious after Madison shooting: ‘When are they going to be safe'
06:30
Josh Marcus
Parents are in fear after a mass shooting hit a Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday.
“I don’t know what to say, because we always send prayers. We always send thoughts. When are we going to stop doing that? This is not okay,” Mireille Jean-Charles told The Washington Post on Monday after she reunited with her three sons, who are students at Abundant Life Christian School. “If your kids are at school, they are not okay. If they’re at church, they are not okay. If they are outside, elsewhere, they are not okay. Where are they going to be safe?”
White House speaks with Wisconsin officials after Madison shooting
05:30
Josh Marcus
The White House has been closely tracking the Madison shooting.
President Biden spoke with Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers and Madison mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway after the shooting, which left three people including the gunman dead, according to officials.
Nancy Pelosi responds to Madison shooting
04:30
Josh Marcus
Once again, our hearts break after a deadly school shooting — this time in Madison.
— Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) December 16, 2024
We know from experience: laws that keep guns from those who pose a threat to others CAN save lives.
No one’s political survival is worth more than our children’s survival. -NP #EndGunViolenceNOW
‘We still haven’t done enough’: Parkland survivor on Madison shooting
03:30
Josh Marcus
David Hogg, a survivor of the Parkland school shooting in Florida, said on Monday that the school shooting in Madison, Wisconsin, shows “we still haven’t done enough” to stop gun violence against children.
“We have a lot further to go. Obviously Congress needs to do more to fight these things and prevent them in the first place,” he told ABC News on Monday.
“What I think about too at the same time are the shootings we don’t hear about because they were prevented, whet that’s through the red flag law we passed after Parkland.”
Family of teen shooter having ‘long conversation’ with police
03:03
Josh Marcus
The family of Madison school shooter Natalie Rupnow is cooperating with police, Madison officials said on Monday night.
The 15-year-old’s father was speaking with police Monday evening, Madison police chief Shon Barnes told reporters.
“We have no reason to believe they have committed a crime at this time,” Barnes said of the family.
Madison police ‘don’t know’ if shooter was trans as chief tells public to leave aside ‘personal biases'
02:55
Josh Marcus
The Madison Police Department has weighed in on fast-moving, unverified online speculation that the shooter in today’s Madison school shooting was transgender.
Chief Shon Barnes said Monday evening he didn’t know if Natalie Rupnow, who died in the shooting, was transgender, but that gender wasn’t immediately important.
“I dont think that whatever happened today has anything to do with how she, or he, or they may have wanted to identify,” Barnes said. “I wish people would kind of leave their own personal biases out of this. We have people who have yet another school shooting in Madison. That’s where my focus will be for the very near future.”
Second grader called 911 in Madison shooting
02:49
Josh Marcus
A second grader was the one who called police on Monday morning to alert them about the Madison shooting, police said.
“Let that soak in for a minute, a second grade student called 911 at 10:57am to report a shooting at school,” Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said on Monday.
The shooting occurred in a study hall room where students of multiple grades were present, police said.
Police identify suspect in Madison shooting
02:39
Josh Marcus
The Madison police department has identified the shooter who killed two people and died in a school shooting on Monday morning.
The individual is 15-year-old Natalie Rupnow, who has previously been described by officials as a student at the school.
Police said on Monday that an alleged document circulating online from the shooter had not been verified.
Wisconsin governor responds to Madison shooting
02:27
Josh Marcus
My full statement on the school shooting at Abundant Life Christian School today in Madison.
— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) December 16, 2024
I'm directing flags across the state to be immediately lowered to half-staff as we honor those whose lives were senselessly taken in this tragedy. pic.twitter.com/HYIjVYcqaF
Madison shooter planned attack in advance: report
02:12
Josh Marcus
Law enforcement believes the shooter who killed two people and died in a school shooting on Monday in Madison, Wisconsin, planned the attack in advance.
The individual had been detailing with personal problems and expressed some of this information in writing, an unnamed law enforce source told CNN.
So far, police have not spoken publicly about a motive, target, or pre-made plan for the attack.
Motive still unclear in Madison shooting
01:55
Josh Marcus
Police do not know whether the shooting had a specific target or motive.
“Whether they were targeted or not would speak to motivation and we don’t know that answer just yet,” Madison police chief Shon Barnes said on Monday.
Unclear if classes to continue this week at Abundant Life
01:35
Josh Marcus
School officials are still discussing whether students will return to class at Abundant Life Christian School this week, after a mass shooting on Monday left three dead and six injured.“Whether we will return to classes this week — because this was our last week, we were done on Friday — is still to be determined,” Barbara Wiers, director of elementary and school relations at Abundant Life, told The Associated Press.
ICYMI: What we know about the shooter who killed at least two in Madison
01:15
Josh Marcus
An unidentified juvenile shooter has killed at least two people and injured six others at a private K-12 school in Madison, Wisconsin.
The shooting occurred at Abundant Life Christian School around 11 a.m. The suspected shooter is believed to be a “juvenile” student at the school who died by suicide, Madison Police Department Chief Shon Barnes said on Monday afternoon. Six people were taken to nearby hospitals with injuries ranging from minor to life-threatening.
“I’m asking everyone to send your heartfelt wishes and prayers, and thoughts, yet again, to a community — but this time it’s my community,” Barnes told reporters.
Police appear to search Madison home in connection to shooting
00:55
Josh Marcus
Madison police appear to be searching a house on the north side of the city in connection with today’s shooting.
A WMTV news crew captured footage of officers outside the house, whose door appeared off its hinges on the ground nearby.
“As soon as I went in the house, I heard a loud boom,” a neighbor who gave her name as Maureen told the station.
Motive still unclear in Madison shooting
00:46
Josh Marcus
Police are still looking for information on what motivated an individual to shoot up a Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday.
Madison police chief Shon Barnes told reporters on Monday it remained unclear if the victims of the shooting were targeted.
“Whether they were targeted or not would speak to motivation and we don’t know that answer just yet,” Barnes said at an evening news conference.
Impact of shooting will be ‘etched’ on students and community
00:35
Josh Marcus
Local leaders are reeling after today’s shooting in Madison.
Here’s what police chief Shon Barnes said on Monday evening.
This is a day that will be certainly be etched in the collective memories of everyone in Madison, and just another example of what can happen in our country. We have to do better. We have to collaborate with each other...We have to use our resources when we see things that may being going wrong or someone who may be going off the beaten path. That’s the charge really to our country now, and we have to do a better job of taking care of each other. All children have been reunited with their parents. The children are now the latest group of survivors of a school shooting.”
Suspected shooter didn’t ‘breach’ school: police
00:20
Josh Marcus
The gunman who opened fired and killed two people at a Wisconsin Christian school on Monday does not appear to have broken into the building, according to police.
“We believe the shooter was at school,” Chief Shon Barnes of the Madison Police Deparment told reporters on Monday. “We have no information that there was some kind of breach at the school.”
Madison shooting update: student reunification complete, two released from hospital
00:10
Josh Marcus
Students from Abundant Life Christian School have finished reunifying with their parents after today’s mass shooting, while staff reunification remains ongoing, according to Madison Police Department chief Shon Barnes.
Two of the six people hospitalized in the shooting have since been released, he said.
Police chief warns public about unverified rumors on Madison shooting
00:05
Josh Marcus
Madison Police Department Shon Barnes is warning members of the public to only get their information about today’s shooting from trusted government and media sources, as online speculation about the incident runs rampant.
“Social media, quite frankly, is something I can’t control,” he said.
“If you’re listening to this and you’re at home or thinking about reposting something that did not come from someone in this room, a trusted and respected journalist, please don’t do that,” he added. “It does help erode the trust in this process, and that’s all we have.”
Barnes said such rumors could “fan the flames” at a time when “we need to come together and not be divided by anything.”
WATCH: Madison police chief addresses public
Monday 16 December 2024 23:48
Josh Marcus
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes is addressing the public with the latest information about today’s shooting.
“I cannot at this time formally tell you the age or gender or name of the shooter,” Barnes said, despite unconfirmed media reports the suspected shooter was a female student at the school. “We do not want to compromise any part of the investigation.”
Watch his full remarks here, via WMTV.
'Not a drill... we heard popping...'
Monday 16 December 2024 23:45
Io Dodds
A Wisconsin father has described how he first heard about the shooting from his 14-year-old daughter 31 minutes before being informed by the school.
Rob Nelson, whose daughter Olive is in the ninth grade at Abundant Life Christian School, told The Washington Post that she texted him at 10:58am local time to say: “Not a drill... we heard popping.”
Oliva then described sitting in a corner of her classroom while the shooting went on outside, hearing shouts for an ambulance, and seeing police officers swarm the premises.
Nelson then received a text message from the school at 11:29am informing him of an “active shooter incident”, with a follow-up text instructing him to go to a medical clinic to be connected with his children.
“We’ve been packed into a small room in the basement here for the last several hours, basically with no information,” he said.
Madison school did not have school resource officer: police
Monday 16 December 2024 23:44
Josh Marcus
Abundant Life Christian School did not have a school police officer or metal detectors on-site at the time of Monday’s shooting, according to local police.
“I’m not aware that the school has metal detectors, nor should schools have metal detectors,” Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes told reporters on Monday. “It’s a school, it’s a safe space.”
As The Independent has reported, school resource officers are a frequent topic of discussion after school shootings, but research hasn’t shown that they’re effective at stopping mass gun violence incidents.
Vigil planned at Wisconsin Capitol after shooting
Monday 16 December 2024 23:30
Josh Marcus
A vigil is planned tomorrow for the victims of Monday’s school shooting in Madison.
The event will take place at the Wisconsin State Capitol.
“We are actively planning ways to provide support, including safe spaces for youth to process their feelings, sharing mental health resources, and collaborating with community partners to address community needs,” Michael Johnson of the Boys & Girls Club of Dane County wrote on Facebook.
‘It’s just a shame’: Milwaukee Bucks coach on Madison shooting
Monday 16 December 2024 23:15
Josh Marcus
Doc Rivers, head coach of the Milwaukee Bucks NBA team, is the latest community leader to weigh in on the Madison shooting.
“It’s just a shame that this keeps happening, that kids can’t go to school safe and it seems like we don’t do anything about it,” Rivers told reporters on Monday. “I’m not going to get up on the podium and give a long speech, except for it’s just bad, and we’re thinking about ‘em.”
Doc Rivers on the tragic shooting in Madison. pic.twitter.com/Ocmobmnhf7
— Milwaukee Bucks (@Bucks) December 16, 2024
Madison shooting is 83rd of 2024, setting record for last two decades
Monday 16 December 2024 23:00
Josh Marcus
The shooting on Monday in Madison, Wisconsin, is the 83rd school shooting this year.
2024 has been the year with the most school shootings since 2008, according a CNN database.
Community reacts to Madison shooting
Monday 16 December 2024 22:41
Josh Marcus
Community members are in shock in Madison, Wisconsin, after a shooting at a Christian school left three people dead, included the suspected shooter, and six people injured.
“I didn’t want to believe it. First I thought it was an accident,” Gary Herrmann, who lives nearby, told WMTV. “And then when I heard shooter, that’s when it really hit me.”
“Your world stops for a minute. Nothing else matters,” Bethany Highman, whose daughter goes to Abundant Life Christian School, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “We’re just waiting, praying.”
Shooting is Madison’s second in seven months
Monday 16 December 2024 22:26
Josh Marcus
The incident today in Madison is the area’s second major mass shooting in seven months.
This summer, 12 people were wounded in a shooting at a rooftop party.
What to know about the Abundant Life Christian School shooting
Monday 16 December 2024 21:30
Kelly Rissman
Authorities in Madison, Wisconsin are reporting at least five dead and multiple injured at a K-12 private school.
The shooting occurred at the Abundant Life Christian School around 11 a.m. Monday. The shooter, who is believed to have been a student at the school, is among the dead, according to Madison police. Police said the school has been cleared and there is no further threat.
A nearby high school, a middle school, and an elementary school were locked down in the midst of the Abundant Life shooting.
Chief Shon Barnes of the Madison PD called it a “sad, sad day.”
Read the full story.
Suspected shooter used a handgun, police say
Monday 16 December 2024 21:15
Kelly Rissman
Someone from the school called 911 to report an active shooter, Chief Barnes said.
A handgun was recovered from the scene, he said.
It’s unclear how many students attend the school but each age group is separated by floor, the police chief said.
Dozens of school shootings that have resulted in injuries or death in 2024 alone, according to analysis
Monday 16 December 2024 21:00
Kelly Rissman
This year alone, there have been 38 school shootings that resulted in injuries or deaths, according to an Education Week analysis.
There have been 220 of these shootings since 2018, the outlet found.
According to K-12 shooting database, which tracks gun-related incidents on school grounds, there have been 323 incidents this year alone.
A student and a teacher were killed along with the teenage suspected shooter: police
Monday 16 December 2024 20:41
Kelly Rissman
The suspected shooter was a teenage student who attended Abundant Life Christian School, Chief Barnes said.
Three people were killed in the tragedy in total: the alleged shooter, another teenage student and a teacher.
Two students are in critical condition at the hospital with life-threatening injuries. Four students are also suffering from non-life-threatening injuries.
Wisconsin Congressman calls for Congress to pass gun safety measures after ALCS shooting
Monday 16 December 2024 20:30
Kelly Rissman
Democratic Rep Mark Pocan, whose district includes Madison, sent his condolences to those impacted by the Abundant Life Christian School shooting and called for Congress to take action to improve gun safety measures.
“Thoughts and prayers without action means more school shootings, more dead kids,” he wrote on X. “More ACTION is needed by our elected officials. And more BACKBONE to stand up to gun manufacturers. This is uniquely a United States problem that doesn’t have to happen.”
Schools should be safe spaces without the threat of gun violence, police chief says
Monday 16 December 2024 20:25
Kelly Rissman
When a reporter asked Chief Barnes whether Abundant Life Christian School had metal detectors, he pushed back: “I’m not aware that the school had metal detectors, nor should schools have metal detectors.”
He added: “It’s a school. It’s a safe space.”
‘I pray with my kids every morning that this won’t happen'
Monday 16 December 2024 20:15
Kelly Rissman
One mother whose children attend Abundant Life Christian School told Fox11 that she and her kids pray every morning that there won’t be a school shooting — and then oen happened.
“I pray with my kids every morning that this won’t happen,” she told the outlet.
“It’s the world that we live in. But God is good, God is gracious,” she said. Her children are safe.
Three people are deceased — including the alleged shooter — and multiple others are injured after a juvenile is believed to have opened fire at their own school.
The identity of the suspected shooter has not been made public and it’s not immediately clear how many of the victims are children.
WATCH: Police say two killed, shooter dead at Wisconsin Christian school
Monday 16 December 2024 20:05
Kelly Rissman
Who are the victims?
Monday 16 December 2024 19:55
Katie Hawkinson
Police have yet to release any details on the two people killed and others injured in the Monday morning shooting.
“I’m not going to give any information about who the victims are, whether they’re students, staff or parents, because we need to make sure that we can notify people,” Barnes told reporters.
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers responds to tragedy
Monday 16 December 2024 19:45
Kelly Rissman
“I am closely monitoring the incident at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison,” Evers wrote on X.
“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond.”
What have police said?
Monday 16 December 2024 19:39
Kelly Rissman
The shooting occurred at the Abundant Life Christian School around 11 a.m. Monday.
The alleged shooter, who is believed to have been a student at the school, died, Madison Police say. Details about the shooter and the victims have not yet been released.
“Today is a sad, sad day — not only for Madison, but for the entire country,” Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said at a Monday press conference.
“I’m asking everyone to send your heartfelt wishes and prayers, and thoughts, yet again, to a community — but this time it’s my community,” he told reporters.
Read the full story.
Abundant Life Christian School asks for prayers in wake of tragedy
Monday 16 December 2024 19:30
Kelly Rissman
“Prayers Requested! Today, we had an active shooter incident at ALCS,” the private K-12 Christian school wrote in a Facebook post hours after a shooter opened fire at the school.
Three people, including the suspected shooter, have died and six others were taken to local hospitals, police said.
“We are in the midst of following up. We will share information as we are able. Please pray for our Challenger Family,” the school wrote.
Gun safety groups react to yet another school shooting
Monday 16 December 2024 19:25
Kelly Rissman
“Terrifying and heartbreaking news out of Madison, Wisconsin. We shouldn’t have to live like this. We deserve to live free from the terror of gun violence. We will fight to end it,” March for Our Lives wrote on X.
Sandy Hook Promise similarly wrote: “Our hearts are with Madison, Wisconsin as this tragic story unfolds. We cannot allow this to keep happening. We must #EndGunViolence.”
Did the suspected shooter attend the school?
Monday 16 December 2024 19:15
Kelly Rissman
Chief Barnes revealed the suspected shooter is believed to have attended Abundant Life Christian School.
The private school, founded in 1978, has roughly 400 students. The school’s website describes it as “a community Christian school with the vision of providing academic excellence in a Christ-centered environment for families in the greater Dane County area.”
Katie Hawksinson has the full story.
Three people are deceased, including the shooter: police correct earlier report
Monday 16 December 2024 19:10
Kelly Rissman
“At this time, three people are deceased. During the media briefing earlier this afternoon, it was erroneously shared 5 were deceased. Again, three people are deceased. Nine in total were injured, including the three deceased,” Madison Police said in a social media update around 2 p.m.
They also urged parents and guardians should go to the Dean Clinic 1821 S. Stoughton Road for reunification.
Congress members react to school shooting
Monday 16 December 2024 19:05
Kelly Rissman
Tammy Baldwin, the Democratic Senator from Wisconsin, said she had been briefed on the school shooting: “My heart goes out to all those impacted. My office is in touch with local and state officials, and I stand ready to assist law enforcement and anyone affected.”
Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson also responded to the mass shooting: “My sincere condolences and prayers for all the victims of the tragedy at Abundant Life Christian School. I will continue to closely monitor the situation.”
Wisconsin Rep Derrick Van Orden also issued a statement in the aftermath of the tragedy: “I am shocked by the reports of a shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison. Sara Jane and I are praying for the students, teachers, and families impacted. I will continue to monitor the situation as more information is released and am standing by to assist in any way possible.”