the KMFDM t-shirt, the gun and the poster

Monday morning, Natalie Rupnow, one 15 year old studentalso known by the name Samantha, opened fire in a study room at the Abundant Life Christian school (Madison, Wisconsin), killing a classmate and a teacher. Six other people, including five students and another teacher, were injured; two are in critical condition. The young woman then turned the weapon on herself, taking her own life shortly before the police arrived.

A terrible tragedy, the last of a very long series of mass shootings in American schools, which have become so frequent that they are almost no longer newsworthy. The emergency call came in at 11.57am from a child aged just 7-8 years old. The officers intervened within three minutes, but the massacre had already occurred: Rupnow had shot herself and died while being transported to hospital.

Panic in the study room

The massacre took place in a room where students from different classes were studying together. At the first shot, some boys ran away without even taking the jackets. Breken Ives, an 11-year-old student, raised the alarm over the school intercom by shouting: «Lockdown! It’s not a drill».

A teacher managed to get the students to shelter in a corner of the room, away from the killer’s sight.

In another class, a teacher tried to defend her 9-year-old students armed only with a pair of scissors. The school was about to close for the Christmas holidays and the students were preparing for an evening basketball game.

Natalie Rupnow: chi era

Abundant Life school is known for welcoming students with difficulties, victims of bullying or with problematic histories. According to a mother interviewed by the New York Times, Natalie was a new student, enrolled for just a year. The authorities have not yet clarified how the girl came into possession of the 9 mm pistol used to carry out the massacre. The police are examining some of the young woman’s writings which could reveal elements of premeditation. An alleged manifesto shared on social media, in which the young woman expressed her anger. He is currently being examined by investigators.

In a photo circulated online, Rupnow was wearing a band metal tedesca KMFDM

Gender identity

According to the K-12 School Shooting Database, women involved in school shootings are an extremely rare phenomenon: only 9 cases compared to 249 with male perpetrators. However, following the tragedy, rumors spread online that the girl was actually transgenderwhich brings to mind another similar shooting that occurred earlier this year in Perryin the state of Iowa, where a 17-year-old transgender boy, opened fire on his companions, killing a child and wounding five other people, including the school principal.

However, the rumor has not yet been confirmed and Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes has urged the public to avoid speculation on Rupnow’s gender identity: “It doesn’t matter right now. Eight hours after a mass shooting, we need to focus on the facts.”