The 15-year-old girl who police say killed a teacher and teen student in a shooting at a private Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, was in her first semester at the school and the attack lasted eight minutes, school officials say. Natalie Rupnow opened fire inside a study hall at Abundant Life Christian School (ALCS) just before 11 a.m. on Monday, killing a fellow student and a teacher, while six people were injured, including two students with life-threatening injuries. A motive for the slayings is unknown, with Rupnow taking her own life during the incident.
School officials revealed that Rupnow was a new student at the school and that teachers had no significant concerns about her. The attack lasted eight minutes, shorter than the school’s regular snack break. The community’s faith and connection to one another has sustained them as they struggle with the possibility that the shooter’s motive might remain undetermined.
Police received a 911 call at 10:57 a.m. and the first law enforcement officer entered the building at 11 a.m. The news comes amid revelations that Rupnow was in contact with a 20-year-old man in California, whom authorities say was plotting a mass shooting with her.
Police are scouring online records and other resources and speaking with the shooter’s parents and classmates in an attempt to determine a motive. The police chief said that discovering a motive for the killings is still a top priority and that there is nothing to suggest the suspect’s gender played a factor.
The shooter brought two guns to the school, and it is unclear how she obtained the weapons. Only one gun was allegedly used by Rupnow. The victims, 14-year-old student Rubi Patricia Vergara and 42-year-old teacher Erin M. West, will be laid to rest over the coming days.
Four of the six who were injured have been discharged from the hospital, officials said. The two students with life-threatening injuries remain hospitalized.
