Madison, Wisconsin Christian school mass shooting

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A teacher and teenage student were killed and six students were hurt in a shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, on Monday, police said.

Police had briefly mentioned a higher death toll but later revised the information.

The suspect, a teenage student at the school, is also dead, police said. The suspect used a handgun, police said.

A motive is not clear, Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said at a news conference.

Of the six injured students, two are in critical condition with life-threatening injuries, Barnes said. Four other students suffered non-life-threatening injuries, he said.

The shooting was "confined to one space," but it’s not clear if it was a classroom or hallway, the chief said.

"I never saw so many police cars in my life -- just blue and red lights lining the school, lining the streets. Fire department, paramedics, everybody was there," swarming the usually quiet neighborhood, John Diaz De Leon told ABC News Live.

He said he saw officers with long guns at the scene and older students run from the school across the parking lot.

“Later on, very slowly in a more orderly fashion, the younger students holding hands were let out to go across the parking lot," he said.

The school has been cleared, Barnes said. There's no danger to the community, he said.

The suspect’s family is cooperating, the police chief said.

Officials are working to reunite students with their parents. About 390 students from kindergarten through 12th grade attend the school.

The police chief said he began his career as a teacher.

The shooter at the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison was female, a law enforcement official briefed on the shooting tells CNN.

Authorities identified Natalie Rupnow, 15, who went by the name “Samantha,” as the shooter, according to Barnes. Evidence suggests the shooter died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said, and confirmed she was pronounced dead while en route to the hospital.

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

“How does any 15-year-old get a hold of a gun? Or anyone for that matter? We get into the philosophical questions of guns and gun safety,” Barnes said at the news conference.

Federal and local law enforcement are combing over the crime scene, working to uncover the suspect’s motive and preparing to support the heartbroken school community as they find themselves at the center of a distinctly American tragedy.

The attack at Abundant Life 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. Of the 83 school shootings this year, 56 have been reported on K-12 campuses and 27 on university and college campuses. The deadliest school shooting of the year was in Winder, Georgia, where four victims were left dead at Apalachee High School.

How the shooting and response unfolded
hours before the shooting began, students from kindergarten to high school filed onto the school’s 28-acre campus to sit through the last week of classes before Christmas vacation. They had a week of festivities to look forward to, including a holiday concert and an Ugly Christmas Sweater Day, according to the school’s website.

The suspected shooter entered the school at the beginning of the day with the rest of the students, police said.

As the school day got underway, the shooter pulled out a handgun and opened fire on their peers, Barnes said. The shooting was “confined to one space,” the chief said, adding later it was a “classroom in a study hall of students from mixed grades.”

At 10:57 a.m., a second-grade student called 911 to report the shooting, Barnes said. “Let that soak in for a minute,” he remarked.

A deputy from the Dane County Sheriff’s Office was the first to arrive on the scene at 11:00 a.m., followed by the first Madison police officer just 24 seconds later, who immediately entered the school.

Medics with the police department were conducting training about three miles away and raced to respond to the shooting, Barnes said.

“They left the training center immediately and came down here — and doing in real time what they were actually practicing for,” Barnes said.

“When officers arrived, they found multiple victims suffering from gunshot wounds,” Barnes said. Within minutes, officers reported the shooter was down and a gun had been recovered.

Police cleared the school building and all students were accounted for and reunited with their families, Barnes said.

“They were clearly scared,” Barbara Wiers, director of elementary and school relations for Abundant Life, said of the students when they realized it wasn’t a drill. “When they heard ‘lockdown, lockdown’ and nothing else – they knew it was real, but they handled themselves brilliantly.”

Sixth grader Adler Jean-Charle, who was in class with his twin brother at the time of the shooting, said, “We heard them and then some people started crying. Then we just waited until the police came to escort us out to the church.”

He recalled hearing two gunshots, and questioned, “Why did they do that?” Adler said he felt a sense of relief upon seeing his mother afterward, “I was happy and safe.”

Who is the suspect?
15-year-old Natalie Rupnow attended the private school along with some 420 students in grades Kindergarten through 12, according to school administrators. The school’s website boasts “smaller class sizes” catering to students from about 200 families in the Dane County area.

Police emphasized the need for greater responsibility on social media regarding posts about the shooter, when asked about her gender identity, and urged people on the internet to leave out their personal biases.

“I don’t know whether Natalie was transgender or not. And quite frankly, I don’t think that’s important at all,” Barnes said. “I don’t think whatever happened today has anything to do with how she or he or they may want to identify.”

Ongoing investigation as police seek motive
Federal and local investigators are working to determine the shooter’s motive and details about the firearm used in the shooting.

While police have not revealed any prior interactions with Rupnow or any known issues, they said they are exploring all avenues to uncover a motive and are actively engaging with Rupnow’s family, who are fully cooperating.

Authorities have been unable to identify the authenticity of a manifesto, Barnes said.

“We’re certainly aware that it’s been posted and the person who posted it, alleged to have a connection with the victim,” he said, adding authorities have not located the person who made the post, but have shared information with the FBI for help.

The suspect’s father is speaking with police at one of their facilities, Barnes said, adding police are trying to determine what he may or may not know. Authorities do not intend to charge the parents of the suspect “at this time,” Barnes announced.

Law enforcement officials are working to interview witnesses, and students are being encouraged to speak only when they feel ready, the police chief said.

“We’re not going to interrogate students. We’re going to give them an opportunity to come in and speak to what they may have saw when they feel ready, which is why some of these questions can’t be answered,” Barnes said.

The suspect’s home was searched Monday and police are seeking additional search warrants, Barnes said.

A heavy police presence was reported at a home in northern Madison Monday night. Barnes confirmed it is related to the shooting investigation but provided no further details.

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

President Joe Biden called for more government action to address gun violence after the shooting, including universal background checks and a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.

The motive for a shooting that killed a teacher and a student and wounded others at a Wisconsin school appears to be a “combination of factors,” a police chief said Tuesday as he appealed to the public to share what they might know about the 15-year-old girl who attacked a study hall before shooting herself.

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes offered no details about a possible motive, though he said bullying at Abundant Life Christian School would be investigated.

Barnes said police are also investigating writings that may have been penned by Natalie Rupnow and could shed light on her actions.

“Identifying a motive is our top priority, but at this time it appears that the motive is a combination of factors,” the chief told reporters.