Abundant Life Christian School
Natalie Lynn Rupnow of Madison, Wisconsin, United States has died. She was 15.
Rupnow was a student at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison. The school offers grades from Kindergarten through 12th grade and it currently has around 420 students.
The school was founded in 1978. It had its first graduating class in 1985.
At around 10:57 a.m. on December 16, 2024, Rupnow opened fire inside a classroom at the school during a study hall with students from different grades. Faculty member Erin West, 42, and student Rubi Vergara, 14, were fatally shot while another teacher and five other students were wounded in the shooting.
In the evening, two of the wounded victims were discharged from St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison while two others are still hospitalized there in stable condition. The other two victims, who are both students, are at a different hospital in critical condition.
While the school has no metal detectors and a school resource officer, it has other security protocols in place, according the schools director of elementary and school relations Barbara Wiers. She stated after the shooting, “Our hope is that there will be some good that comes out of this as we can learn and grow and continue to support other schools.”
Natalie Lynn Rupnow
Authorities are investigating the origin of the handgun used by Rupnow. She died before Madison Police Department officers arrived at the school at around 11:00 a.m.
No officers fired their weapons, according to Madison Police Department chief Shon Barnes. Rupnow is believed to have died from a self-inflicted wound.
A law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told CNN that Rupnow planned the attack in advance. She allegedly plotted a mass shooting with Alexander Charles Paffendorf, 20, of Carlsbad, San Diego County, California, USA.
Rupnow also went by the name Samantha Rupnow. Her father Jeffrey W. Rupnow, 42, of Madison attended Madison East High School in Madison.
After the shooting, U.S. president Joe Biden, 82, spoke with Wisconsin governor Tony Evers, 73, and Madison mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway, 53. In a statement, the president described the shooting as “shocking” and “unconscionable”.
CONAN Daily 