Shooting Likely a Combination of Factors

Following the deaths of a teacher and student at Abundant Life Christian School in, Madison, Wisc., police chief Shon Barnes indicated that the motive appears to be a “combination of factors” for a 15-year-old female student’s attack on a study hall.

The shooter, Natalie Rupnow, 15, turned her weapon on herself, ending her life without explanation, although police are said to be reviewing writings penned by the teenager. The shooter died enroute to the hospital. This could shed light on her actions, police said.

The violence erupted at the school shortly before 11 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 16, when a second-grade teacher called 911 to report gunshots at the non-denominational school campus. First responders arrived three minutes after the first call for help. They had been involved in a training exercise three miles from the school.

Identification of the deceased is pending as law enforcement notifies family. In the initial stages of the investigation, police believe a 9mm pistol was used in the shooting. Both the shooter and the weapon of choice are a departure of what has happened most of the time there is a campus shooting. The identities of the six injured students also are being withheld currently. Two of the injured students have been released from the hospital. Two remain in critical condition.

Madison Metropolitan School District superintendent Joe Gothard said it was not enough that the district work on safety, but that those affiliated with the school need to connect every day.

“We need to make a commitment that we know we’re there for one another, hopefully to avoid preventable tragedies like yesterday,” Gothard said.

Dozens of school shootings have been recorded in recent years, especially deadly outcomes at Newtown, CT; Parkland, FL; and Uvalde, TX. According to David Riedman, founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database, females involved in campus shootings are extremely rare while males in their teens and early twenties carry out most of the shootings.

Authorities have spoken with family members, all of whom have been cooperative.

This story will be updated throughout the day as latest information is received. It is unclear if school will continue this week, just days before the Christmas break.

About the Author

Ralph C. Jensen is the Publisher of Security Today magazine.

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