December 16 news on Madison, Wisconsin school shooting | CNN

December 16 news on Madison, Wisconsin school shooting

Elise Hammond Aditi Sangal Antoinette Radford Elizabeth Wolfe Chris Boyette Michelle Watson
By Elise Hammond, Aditi Sangal, Antoinette Radford, Elizabeth Wolfe, Chris Boyette, Steve Almasy, Michelle Watson and Taylor Romine, CNN
Updated 9:37 AM EST, Tue December 17, 2024
shooting thumb.png
Sixth grader and his mother speak out following the Wisconsin school shooting
1:04 • Source: CNN
shooting thumb.png
1:04

What we're covering

• The shooter who opened fire at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, was 15-year-old female student Natalie Rupnow, who went by the name “Samantha,” police said on Monday. She shot herself and died.

• The shooting left one student and one teacher dead and six injured, including two people who are facing life-threatening conditions, police said.

• A second-grade student made the 911 call to report the shooting, police said Monday.

• Abundant Life Christian school is a K-12 school that serves about 420 students, according to an administrator. It planned to close for Christmas vacation after this week.

Updates

(77)

Our live coverage of the shooting at the Abundant Life Christian School has moved here.

The school year began with mass shootings. It's about to go on Christmas break the same way

From CNN's Jessie Yeung
Emergency vehicles are staged outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin on December 16.
Emergency vehicles are staged outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin on December 16.
Morry Gash/AP

The US school year is heading into its Christmas holiday break similar to how it began – with a mass shooting.

The shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday was the 83rd school shooting recorded in 2024, surpassing 2023 for the most school shootings in a single year since CNN began tracking such incidents in 2008.

And the start of the academic year in early fall had been scattered with numerous shootings — including an apparent murder-suicide on the first day of classes at Rice University in Houston on August 26.

The following week, a 14-year-old shooter killed four victims at a high school in Winder, Georgia — making it the deadliest school shooting of the year.

Wisconsin shaken: The state has experienced a number of other scares in recent months. In May, police shot and killed a student who brought a gun near a middle school in the village of Mount Horeb, about 23 miles southwest of Madison.

The student was a minor and did not manage to enter the school. Nobody else was injured.

Then in November, a 13-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of planning a shooting in Kenosha, by Lake Michigan, after he tried to enter a secure area of an elementary school while carrying two bags. The boy had been searching online about school shootings, and had made several comments to other students about school shootings for months beforehand, police said.

Police briefing and candlelight vigil: What to expect on Tuesday as Madison mourns

From CNN's Jessie Yeung

The city of Madison, Wisconsin, was left reeling after a school shooting on Monday killed one student and one teacher and injured several others, including two in critical condition.

The shooter, identified by police as 15-year-old female student Natalie Rupnow, died of a self-inflicted gunshot after the attack at Abundant Life Christian School.

Here’s what to look for on Tuesday:

  • Police information: Madison police will hold a briefing at 1 p.m. local time on Tuesday, where they could release the names and ages of the victims. On Monday evening, police said they wanted to make sure all family members had been notified before the victims’ identities were released.
  • Flags at half staff: All flags over federal installations and facilities statewide were ordered to fly at half staff on Monday, effective until December 22, in honor of the victims. Gov. Tony Evers, who issued the order, said it was “unthinkable” that children and teachers might go to school and never come home.
  • Community mourns: A candlelight vigil is scheduled for Tuesday night, with the city mayor and education officials expected to attend, according to CNN affiliate WMTV. On Monday, police asked the community not to hold any vigils at the school, which remains an active crime scene and is being monitored by law enforcement overnight.
  • Schools resume: Schools in the Madison Metropolitan School District will continue classes as scheduled on Tuesday, according to CNN affiliate WISC-TV. Several district schools had been put on secure hold on Monday, but the hold is now lifted.

Neighbors describe seeing police throw stun grenades into home during shooting investigation

From CNN's Jessie Yeung

Authorities on Monday investigated a residential property north of Madison, Wisconsin, just eight miles from the Abundant Life Christian School where two people were killed in a shooting Monday, according to CNN affiliate WTMJ.

Videos show a home decorated with Christmas lights and cordoned off with police tape. The main door had been removed, and the windows damaged. Neighbors saw police throw stun grenades, which detonate with a bright flash and loud bang, into the home earlier in the afternoon, WTMJ reported.

A neighbour speaks during an interview with WTMJ.
A neighbour speaks during an interview with WTMJ.
WTMJ

Neighbors told WTMJ that officers had arrived in the early afternoon, just after the shooting took place, and were going in and out until night fell.

“I heard the news this afternoon and thought, well, we’ll just drive by the main drag, and there it was,” one neighbor told WTMJ. “The front door was taken off and nobody was around, and the detectives are in there mopping up the mess.”

Earlier on Monday, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said the suspect’s home had been searched and police are seeking additional search warrants. The 15-year-old suspect’s family has so far been cooperating with law enforcement, and police are not looking to charge the parents in connection to the shooting “at this time,” Barnes said.

He confirmed that the heavy police presence at a home in northern Madison was related to the shooting investigation but provided no further details.

Mother with daughter at Abundant Life says they pray "every morning that this won't happen"

From CNN's Jessie Yeung
Second-grade student Nora Gottsckalk speaks to CNN affiliate WISC in Madison, Wisconsin, on December 16.
Second-grade student Nora Gottsckalk speaks to CNN affiliate WISC in Madison, Wisconsin, on December 16.
WISC

Second grader Nora Gottsckalk, age 8, was in the school hallway getting ready for lunch when the shooting began, she told CNN affiliate WISC on Monday.

“I was really scared, and I was really sad.”

Abundant Life Christian School is a small school – about 420 students from kindergarten to high school – with parents and school administrators describing it as a tight-knit community.

Bethany Highman speaks to CNN affiliate WMTV.
Bethany Highman speaks to CNN affiliate WMTV.
WMTV

Bethany Highman grew up in Madison, herself attending Abundant Life as a child — and now has a daughter attending the school. Her daughter was unharmed during the shooting on Monday, she told CNN affiliate WMTV in the afternoon, but she was still waiting to be reunited and wasn’t sure of her whereabouts.

Survivors of the shooting won't be OK "for a long time," says mom with 3 kids at the Madison school

From CNN's Jennifer Feldman
Sixth grade student Adler Jean-Charles speaks to reporters in Madison, Wisconsin, on December 16.
Sixth grade student Adler Jean-Charles speaks to reporters in Madison, Wisconsin, on December 16.
WISC

Sixth-grade student Adler Jean-Charles was attending English class Monday morning at Abundant Life Christian School when the lockdown occurred.

“I was scared. Why did they do that?” he said.

The students were then taken to the hospital to be reunited with their parents, where Jean-Charles received a teddy bear. When he saw his mom, “I felt safe,” he said.

Mireille Jean-Charles talks to reporters.
Mireille Jean-Charles talks to reporters.
WISC

His mother, Mireille Jean-Charles, said she had two other sons also attending the school. When they were reunited, they cried and prayed together, she said.

When asked if she was OK, she shook her head and broke into tears.

Police release the name of the suspect in the Abundant Life Christian School shooting. Here's the latest

From CNN staff
Police officers stand guard near the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, on December 16.
Police officers stand guard near the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, on December 16.
Scott Olson/Getty Images

Authorities identified Natalie Rupnow, 15, who went by the name “Samantha,” as the suspected shooter at Abundant Life Christian School on Monday morning in Madison, Wisconsin, according to Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes.

Evidence suggests the suspect died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Barnes said at a Monday night news conference, adding that the suspect was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital.

Barnes asked the community not to hold a vigil at the school as it is still an active crime scene, which is being monitored by police overnight and no one is allowed inside or on the school property.

Barnes provided additional updates during a Monday night news conference:

  • Location of shooting: Monday’s shooting took place “inside a classroom in a study hall of students from mixed grades,” Barnes said.
  • Child called 911: A second grader at the school called 911 to report the shooting, Barnes told reporters.
  • A reported manifesto: Authorities are aware of writings that have been posted, and the person who made the post is “alleged to have a connection with the victim,” Barnes said. “We haven’t been able to verify that it’s authentic.” He said said authorities have not located the person who made the post, but have shared information with the FBI for help.
  • Suspect’s family: The suspect’s father is speaking with police at one of their facilities, Barnes said, adding that police are trying to determine what he may or may not have known. Police are not looking to charge the parents of the 15-year-old suspect in connection with the shooting “at this time,” Barnes said.
  • The suspect’s gender: Asked by a reporter whether the suspect was transgender, Barnes said he did not know and “quite frankly, I don’t think that’s important at all.” He added that he doesn’t “think whatever happened today has anything to do with how she or he or they may want to identify.”
  • No previous interactions: Police are not aware of any previous interactions with the 15-year-old suspect, Barnes said.
  • Victims: Barnes said he wants to make sure all family members have been notified before he releases the ages and names of the victims of Monday’s shooting. Additionally, two of the six people who were injured are students in critical condition and have life-threatening injuries, Barnes said.
Screenshot-2024-12-17-at-2.16.11-PM.jpg
mapbox

Timeline: First law enforcement officer arrived minutes after 911 call, police chief says

From CNN's Steve Almasy

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes updated the timeline of the emergency response to the mass shooting Monday morning at Abundant Life Christian School.

Here are some of the details he gave at a news conference:

  • 10:57 a.m. – A second grade student calls 911 to report a shooting at the school.
  • 11 a.m. – A deputy with the Dane County Sheriff’s Office was the first to arrive on the scene.
  • 24 seconds later – The first Madison police officer arrives. The chief says officers entered the school as they arrived.
  • 11:05 a.m.– Officers say a shooter is down and a gun has been recovered.
  • 11:05 a.m. – Fire department personnel arrive, are linked with officers and go to help victims who had been shot.
  • 11:14 a.m. – Officers began clearing the school building.
  • 11:23 a.m. – Bomb dogs are brought in to clear the facility.
  • 11:26 a.m. – Victims who were being treated at the school begin to be transported to hospitals.

2 out of the 6 people injured are still in critical condition, police chief says

From CNN's Taylor Romine

Two of the six people who were injured in Monday’s shooting are in critical condition and have life-threatening injuries, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said at a news conference tonight.

Those two people are students, he said.

Police are not looking "at this time" to charge parents of suspect in relation to shooting

From CNN's Taylor Romine

Police are not looking to charge the parents of the 15-year-old suspect in connection with Monday’s shooting, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said.

The context: In recent years, law enforcement has charged the parents of children who did a shooting at their school.

James and Jennifer Crumbley, whose son Ethan carried out a school shooting at his Michigan high school in November 2021, were sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison after being convicted of manslaughter.

The father of 14-year-old Colt Gray, who carried out a mass shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia, was charged with 29 counts earlier this year.

This post was updated with context on law enforcement charging parents in mass shooting incidents.

Police waiting for all family members to be notified before releasing names of victims

From CNN's Michelle Watson

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said he wants to make sure all family members have been notified before he releases the ages and names of the victims of Monday’s shooting at Abundant Life Christian School.

“I think we want to make sure that all family members have been notified,” Barnes said.

Barnes also said he wants to make sure all family members are OK with the victims’ names being shared. He suggested the names could be released at Tuesday’s briefing at 1 p.m. local time.

Police are not aware of any previous interactions with the suspect, police chief says

From CNN's Taylor Romine
A large police presence lines the street in front of Abundant Life Christian School after a school shooting on December 16, in Madison, Wisconsin.
A large police presence lines the street in front of Abundant Life Christian School after a school shooting on December 16, in Madison, Wisconsin.
Andy Manis/Getty Images

Police are not aware of any previous interactions with the 15-year-old suspect, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said.

“I think if there were, we certainly would of had some type of intervention, but I’m not aware of that,” Barnes said.

Police chief says the shooter's gender doesn't matter

From CNN's Steve Almasy

People need to be more responsible on social media with posts about the shooter, Police Chief Shon Barnes said when asked at a news conference whether Natalie Rupnow was transgender.

He said people who are on the Internet need to leave out their personal biases and he won’t address information he has seen posted on social media that is incorrect or “just not helping.”

“For what we’re doing right now, today, literally eight hours after a mass shooting in a school in Madison, it is of no consequence at this time (what gender the shooter was),” he said.

The suspect’s father is speaking with police, police chief says

From CNN's Taylor Romine

The suspect’s father is speaking with police at one of their facilities, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said.

Police are “trying to determine what he may knew [sic] or may have not known about what happened today, but again, he lost someone as well,” Barnes said.

Authorities have been unable to identify the authenticity of a manifesto, police chief says

From CNN's Michelle Watson

Authorities have been unable to identify the authenticity of a manifesto, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said.

“We haven’t been able to verify that it’s authentic. We’re certainly aware that it’s been posted and the person who posted it, alleged to have a connection with the victim,” Barnes said.

Barnes said they have not located the person who posted it, but have shared information with the FBI for help.

2nd grader made 911 call about shooting, police chief says

From CNN's Steve Almasy

A second grader at Abundant Life Christian School called 911 to report the shooting Monday, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes told reporters.

Madison police chief asks community not to hold vigil at the school

From CNN's Taylor Romine

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes asked the community not to hold a vigil at Abundant Life Christian School as it is still an active crime scene.

The school is being monitored by police overnight and no one is allowed inside or on the school property, he said.

The shooting occurred in a classroom, police chief says

From CNN's Michelle Watson
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes speaks to media on December 16.
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes speaks to media on December 16.
WKOW

Monday’s shooting at Abundant Life Christian School took place in a classroom, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said.

“The shooting happened inside a classroom in a study hall of students from mixed grades,” Barnes said.

Authorities identify suspect in Abundant Life Christian School shooting

From CNN's Steve Almasy

Authorities identified Natalie Rupnow, 15, who went by the name “Samantha,” as the shooter at Abundant Life Christian School on Monday morning in Madison, Wisconsin, according to the city’s police chief.

Evidence suggests the shooter died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound, Chief Shon Barnes said at a Monday night news conference and was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital.

This post has been updated with the suspect’s name.

More details are emerging about the shooting at a private school in Madison, Wisconsin. Here's the latest

From CNN's Aditi Sangal

In their most recent update, police said two students, who were taken to local hospitals along with four other people after the shooting Monday at a private Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, are battling life-threatening injuries and are in critical condition.

Police had earlier reported that a student and a teacher were killed and others were injured in the shooting that erupted just before 11 a.m. at the Abundant Life Christian School. The suspected shooter is also dead, according to Police Chief Shon Barnes.

The attack is at least the 83rd school shooting of 2024, surpassing 2023 for the most school shootings in a single year since CNN began tracking such shootings in 2008.

Here’s the latest we have learned:

  • About the suspect: The suspect was a 15-year-old female who died of a self-inflicted gunshot, sources tell CNN. The motive is still unknown. However, the shooter planned the attack in advance, a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told CNN. The source indicated that information gathered by investigators suggests the shooter had been dealing with problems and expressed some of those in writings, which they are now reviewing. Police Chief Barnes confirmed that heavy police presence at a home on the north side of Madison is related to the shooting, adding that the parents of the shooter are cooperating with the investigation.
  • Response of students and parents: The reunification process is complete, Barnes said. The students had handled themselves “magnificently” during the shooting once they realized it wasn’t a drill, said Barbara Wiers, a school official. Wiers also said that the families responded with support, patience and kindness and offered prayers. “We also have a very strong faith in our community that in spite of tragedy, God is working,” she said, referring to the community’s faith.
  • Weapon: The US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is working with the Madison Police Department to help find out how the shooter acquired a handgun.
  • School safety: Abundant Life Christian School does not have metal detectors, but it does have “a number of security protocols in place,” Wiers said. The school also trained with the Madison Police Department earlier this year about what to do in an active shooter situation, she said.
  • What’s next: Police will hold another press conference at 9:30 p.m. ET at which they hope to share more information about the suspect, the police chief said.

This post has been updated with additional information from police.

Up next

Show all