By Ryan J. Foley, Scott Bauer, and Todd Richmond, Associated Press
Madison, Wisconsin. According to officials and court records made public Wednesday, the shooter who killed a teacher and a student at a Wisconsin religious school carried two firearms to the school and had communication with a man in California who authorities believe was preparing to assault a federal building.
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes stated that investigators were still looking into why the 15-year-old girl at Madison’s Abundant Life Christian School shot and murdered a classmate and a teacher on Monday before shooting herself. On Wednesday, two additional students who had been shot were still in critical condition.
Barnes stated, “We will try our best to add or give as much information to our public as possible, even though we may never know what she was thinking that day.”
Meanwhile, a 20-year-old Carlsbad man was the subject of a restraining order issued by a California judge on Tuesday under the state’s gun red flag statute. Because he is an urgent danger to himself and others, the guy must turn in his firearms and ammo to the police within 48 hours, unless an officer requests them earlier.
The order claims that the guy told FBI agents that he had been messaging the Wisconsin shooter, Natalie Rupnow, about using a gun and explosives to assault a federal building. What building he had targeted and when he intended to attack are not specified in the order. Additionally, it only mentions that the individual was planning a mass shooting with Rupnow without going into depth about their conversations.
In an obituary published on Wednesday, the kid who died in Monday’s school shooting was identified as Madison resident Rubi Patricia Vergara, 14. According to the obituary, she was a freshman at the school, a voracious reader, a lover of art, and a member of the family worship band, where she sang and played keyboard. Attempts by the Associated Press to contact the girl’s relatives via email and phone on Wednesday night failed.
After first identifying the deceased teacher as Michelle E. West, the Dane County medical examiner on Wednesday night determined that she was 42-year-old Erin Michelle West. When a reporter called a number that was registered for West in public records on Wednesday night, the man who answered the phone hung up.
In a statement released Wednesday night, Barbara Wiers, the school’s director of communications, stated that Vergara had been a student since kindergarten.
Before taking a job as the school’s substitute coordinator and an in-building replacement teacher, West spent three years working as a substitute teacher, according to Wiers.
In an email to The Associated Press, Wiers stated, “These losses are heavy on our hearts.”
In an effort to identify a motivation for the shooting, police, working with the FBI, were searching online documents and other sources and talking to the shooter’s parents and fellow students, Barnes said.
According to the chief, police are unsure if the incident was premeditated or if someone was specifically targeted.
Barnes stated, “I’m not sure if she planned it a week in advance or on that day.” I consider it intending to bring a gun to school in order to harm others. Therefore, we are unsure of the premeditation.
Barnes said he did not know how Rupnow got her two firearms and he would not identify who bought them, citing the continuing investigation.
According to Barnes, Rupnow’s parents have been cooperating, but no decisions have been made regarding whether they could face charges in connection with the shooting.
There are no criminal cases against her mother, Mellissa Rupnow, or father, Jeffrey Rupnow, according to online court records. According to court filings, their daughter resided largely with her father, but they are divorced and share custody of her. According to divorce documents, Natalie attended treatment in 2022, although they don’t specify why.
The school shooting was the most recent of several that have occurred in the United States in recent years, including particularly lethal ones in Uvalde, Texas; Parkland, Florida; and Newtown, Connecticut.
Following a shooting on Monday, people placed flowers outside Madison, Wisconsin’s Abundant Life Christian School on Tuesday, December 17, 2024. (Morry Gash/AP Photo)AP
However, the Wisconsin shooting is unique because, according to David Riedman, founder of the K-12 School Shooting Database, school shootings by teenage girls have been incredibly uncommon in the United States, with most of the shootings being carried out by males in their teens and 20s.
Prekindergarten through high school are offered by the nondenominational Christian school Abundant Life. The school has about 420 pupils enrolled.
The medical examiner’s office originally listed the instructor as Michelle E. West, but this report has been corrected to reflect that she was really Erin Michelle West. Additionally, it has been amended to reflect the day the California guy was the subject of the restraining order.
From Iowa City, Foley reported.
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