The primary images have surfaced of the teenager shooter who killed a pupil and instructor at a Wisconsin Christian faculty — and he or she’s carrying a t-shirt that includes a band favored by Columbine killer Eric Harris.
The photograph of Natalie “Samantha” Rupnow, a 15-year-old pupil on the Okay-12 Ample Life Christian College, was posted on her father’s Fb web page and exhibits her at a capturing vary carrying a shirt from the German band KMFDM.
Harris additionally wore one of many band’s t-shirts in public images earlier than he and Dylan Klebold went on to kill 13 individuals within the 1999 Columbine Excessive College bloodbath.
Different images on her dad’s Fb web page present her fortunately romping within the leaves with two canine.
Police stated Rupnow introduced a handgun to the Madison campus and opened fireplace at round 11 a.m. inside a classroom throughout examine corridor.
In response to regulation enforcement, on Monday, December 16, 15-year-old Natalie Rupnow opened fireplace at Ample Life Christian College, a Okay-12 faculty in Madison, Wisconsin, killing a instructor and teenage pupil along with injuring 5 extra college students and one other instructor. Police additionally stated that Rupnow died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. In response to CNN, the capturing marked the 83rd faculty capturing recorded in the US in 2024, surpassing 2023 for probably the most faculty shootings in a single yr because the outlet started monitoring such occasions in 2008.
“Samantha Rupnow… born a organic feminine however recognized as a male, decides to take others out together with her/him,” an X consumer referred to as “Todd with Trump” wrote. “These faculty shootings don’t have anything to do with weapons. NOTHING! They’ve EVERYTHING to do with full and whole psychological sickness.”
The account Charlie Kirk Information tweeted to its greater than 200,000 followers, “👀🚨BREAKING: The Wisconsin faculty sh**ter has been recognized as a 17-year-old male who identifies as a trans.”
Throughout a press convention on Monday night time, a reporter requested Madison’s chief of police, Shon Barnes, about Rupnow’s gender id.
“Chief, there’s been lots of misinformation on-line together with from Mothers for Liberty activists in Wisconsin claiming that the shooter was transgender, which is a response that we see throughout the nation within the wake of mass shootings, to assert that trans individuals are harmful,” the reporter stated. “Are you able to reply to that instantly?”
“I don’t know whether or not Natalie was transgender or not, and fairly frankly, I don’t assume that’s even essential,” Barnes replied. “I don’t assume that’s essential in any respect. I don’t assume that no matter occurred at this time has something to do with how he or she or they could have wished to determine. And I want individuals would sort of depart their very own private biases out of this.”
The teenage suspect used a handgun, police stated. Authorities are investigating the origin of the firearm and looking out Rupnow’s house within the the north aspect of town, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes stated.
A motive shouldn’t be clear, Barnes stated at a information convention.
It is usually unclear if any of the victims was particularly focused, officers stated on Monday.
Barnes additionally stated police aren’t at the moment trying to cost Rupnow’s mother and father in reference to the lethal capturing.
“The mother and father are absolutely cooperating, we now have no purpose to imagine that they’ve dedicated against the law right now,” Barnes stated.
“This has clearly rocked our faculty neighborhood,” stated Barbara Wiers, the director of elementary and faculty relations for Ample Life Christian College. “However we all know it impacts not simply our faculty neighborhood, however Madison and the higher space and all faculties.”
The college doesn’t have metallic detectors or a faculty useful resource officer, however has different safety protocols in place, together with cameras, Wiers stated.
“Previous to the beginning of the varsity yr, we had a retraining. We practice on this. We do lockdown drills, we do evacuation drills as a part of our customary drill protocols. Our college students are versed in that. Our college are effectively versed in that,” she defined. “The coaching that we did with [Madison Police Department] on the very starting of the yr, previous to the scholars returning to campus, had some new updates, and so we had checked out a few of these issues. So I believe every thing was very contemporary for our college.”
“I can’t, can’t let you know how effectively our college students did in that course of. They had been clearly scared after they realized — after we observe, we all the time say, ‘It is a drill, it’s only a drill.’ Once they heard, ‘Lockdown, lockdown,’ and nothing else, they knew it was actual,” Wiers stated, including: “However they dealt with themselves brilliantly.”
