Two children were killed and 17 people were injured when a shooter opened fire during Mass at a Catholic school in Minneapolis during the first week of classes. Fourteen of the injured are children. The shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. What we know: Two children were killed and 17 others injured when a shooter opened fire during Mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis. Fourteen of the injured are children.All injured victims are expected to survive, according to officials.The shooter, a 23-year-old armed with multiple weapons, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and authorities report no active threat to the community.The school was evacuated, and families gathered at a reunification zone amid a heavy law enforcement presence.Emergency responders were called to the Annunciation Catholic School around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday in the city’s Windom neighborhood, about 8 miles west of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the shooter — armed with a rifle, shotgun and pistol — approached the side of the church and shot through the windows toward the children sitting in the pews during Mass.The children who died were 8 and 10. Fourteen other kids and three octogenarian parishioners were wounded but expected to survive, the chief said.Video below: Minneapolis school shooting full press conference“The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible,” O’Hara said at a news conference as church bells rang out. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey lamented that the violence had forever changed the students’ families and the city along with them.“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” Frey said. “These kids were literally praying.”In a post on X, FBI Director Kash Patel said the shooting is being investigated as an act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics.On Wednesday evening, hundreds prayed, wiped away tears and held each other during a packed vigil at a nearby school’s gym where Gov. Tim Walz and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, along with Catholic clergy, joined the mourners.Archbishop Bernard Hebda talked about the inscription at the front of the Annunciation Church that reads: “House of God and the gate of heaven.”“How is it that such a terrible tragedy could take place in a place that’s the house of God and the gate of heaven?” he asked. “It’s unthinkable.”Fifth-grader Weston Halsne told reporters he ducked for the pews, covering his head, shielded by a friend who was lying on top of him. His friend was hit, he said.”I was super-scared for him, but I think now he’s okay,” the 10-year-old said, adding that he was praying for the other hospitalized children and adults. Halsne’s grandfather, Michael Simpson, said the violence during Mass on the third day of school left him wondering whether God was watching over.”I don’t know where He is,” Simpson said.O’Hara said the shooter was in his early 20s, did not have an extensive known criminal history and is believed to have acted alone. Officials identified the shooter as Robin Westman.O’Hara said police hadn’t yet found any relationship between the shooter and the church, nor determined a motive for the bloodshed. The chief said, however, that investigators were examining a social media post that appeared to show the shooter at the scene and contained “some disturbing writings.”Westman’s uncle, former Kentucky state lawmaker Bob Heleringer, said he did not know the accused shooter well and was confounded by the violence: “It’s an unspeakable tragedy.”“We’re praying for my sister and her other children and also, obviously, for these poor, poor children,” Heleringer said by phone. He said he had last seen Westman at a family wedding three or four years ago. “This was a deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other people worshipping. The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible,” said the police chief, who noted that a wooden plank was placed to barricade some of the side doors. “I’ve been briefed on a shooting at Annunciation Catholic School and will continue to provide updates as we get more information,” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said in a statement on social media. “I’m praying for our kids and teachers whose first week of school was marred by this horrific act of violence.” Hennepin Healthcare, the main trauma hospital in Minneapolis, said in a statement they received 10 patients, including eight children — aged 6 through 14 — and two adults. Seven were considered to be in critical condition. Children’s Minnesota, a pediatric trauma hospital, said it admitted seven children ages 9 through 16. Bill Bienemann, who lives a couple of blocks away and has long attended Mass at Annunciation Church, said he heard dozens of shots, perhaps as many as 50, over as long as four minutes.“I was shocked. I said, ‘There’s no way that could be gunfire,’” he said. “There was so much of it. It was sporadic.”Bienemann’s daughter, Alexandra, said she attended the school from kindergarten to 8th grade, finishing in 2014. After she heard of the shooting, she said she was shaking and crying, and her boss told her to take the day off.“It breaks my heart, makes me sick to my stomach, knowing that there are people I know who are either injured or maybe even killed,” Alexandra Bienemann said. “It doesn’t make me feel safe at all in this community that I have been in for so long.”The police chief said officers immediately responded to reports of the shooting, entered the church, rendered first aid and rescued some of the children hiding throughout the building.Frey and Annunciation’s principal said teachers and children, too, responded heroically.“Children were ducked down. Adults were protecting children. Older children were protecting younger children,” said the principal, Matt DeBoer.Danielle Gunter, the mother of an eighth-grade boy who was shot, in a statement said her son told her a Minneapolis police officer “really helped him” by giving aid and a hug before her son got into an ambulance.Amid a heavy uniformed law enforcement presence later Wednesday morning, children in dark green uniforms trickled out of the school with adults, giving lingering hugs and wiping away tears.Vincent Francoual said his 11-year-old daughter, Chloe, survived the shooting by running downstairs to hide in a room with a table pressed against the door. But he still isn’t sure exactly how she escaped because she is struggling to communicate clearly about the traumatizing scene.“She told us today that she thought she was going to die,” he said.Gov. Tim Walz lamented that children just starting the school year “were met with evil and horror and death.” He and President Donald Trump ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff on state and federal buildings, respectively, and the White House said the two men spoke. The governor was the Democratic vice presidential nominee in last year’s election against Trump’s running mate, now Vice President JD Vance, a Republican.Pope Leo XIV has sent a telegram of condolences over the shooting, calling it a “terrible tragedy” and saying he was praying for relatives of the dead and injured “at this extremely difficult time.” Leo, history’s first American pope, said he was “profoundly saddened” to learn about the shooting at Annunciation Catholic School church. He sent his condolences “to all those affected by this terrible tragedy, especially the families now grieving the loss of a child.””I am heartbroken by the horrific violence at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis this morning,” U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar said on X. “My prayers are with the students, teachers, and families, and I am grateful for the first responders who are on the scene.”President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social platform that he has been briefed on the shooting. “The White House will continue to monitor this terrible situation,” Trump said. “Please join me in praying for everyone involved!” Local and state police, FBI, federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents and other authorities converged on the school.Dating to 1923, the pre-kindergarten through eighth grade school had an all-school Mass scheduled at 8:15 a.m. Wednesday morning, according to its website. Monday was the first day of school, and social media photos from that day show students in green uniforms greeting each other at bicycle racks, smiling for the camera and sitting together.The gunfire was the latest in a series of fatal shootings in the city in less than 24 hours. One person was killed and six others were hurt in a shooting Tuesday afternoon outside a high school in Minneapolis. Hours later, two people died in two other shootings in the city.The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Two children were killed and 17 people were injured when a shooter opened fire during Mass at a Catholic school in Minneapolis during the first week of classes. Fourteen of the injured are children.
The shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Advertisement
What we know:
- Two children were killed and 17 others injured when a shooter opened fire during Mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis. Fourteen of the injured are children.
- All injured victims are expected to survive, according to officials.
- The shooter, a 23-year-old armed with multiple weapons, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, and authorities report no active threat to the community.
- The school was evacuated, and families gathered at a reunification zone amid a heavy law enforcement presence.
Emergency responders were called to the Annunciation Catholic School around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday in the city’s Windom neighborhood, about 8 miles west of Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the shooter — armed with a rifle, shotgun and pistol — approached the side of the church and shot through the windows toward the children sitting in the pews during Mass.
The children who died were 8 and 10. Fourteen other kids and three octogenarian parishioners were wounded but expected to survive, the chief said.
Video below: Minneapolis school shooting full press conference
“The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible,” O’Hara said at a news conference as church bells rang out. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey lamented that the violence had forever changed the students’ families and the city along with them.
“Don’t just say this is about thoughts and prayers right now,” Frey said. “These kids were literally praying.”
In a post on X, FBI Director Kash Patel said the shooting is being investigated as an act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics.
On Wednesday evening, hundreds prayed, wiped away tears and held each other during a packed vigil at a nearby school’s gym where Gov. Tim Walz and U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, along with Catholic clergy, joined the mourners.
Archbishop Bernard Hebda talked about the inscription at the front of the Annunciation Church that reads: “House of God and the gate of heaven.”
“How is it that such a terrible tragedy could take place in a place that’s the house of God and the gate of heaven?” he asked. “It’s unthinkable.”
Fifth-grader Weston Halsne told reporters he ducked for the pews, covering his head, shielded by a friend who was lying on top of him. His friend was hit, he said.
“I was super-scared for him, but I think now he’s okay,” the 10-year-old said, adding that he was praying for the other hospitalized children and adults.
Halsne’s grandfather, Michael Simpson, said the violence during Mass on the third day of school left him wondering whether God was watching over.
“I don’t know where He is,” Simpson said.
O’Hara said the shooter was in his early 20s, did not have an extensive known criminal history and is believed to have acted alone. Officials identified the shooter as Robin Westman.
O’Hara said police hadn’t yet found any relationship between the shooter and the church, nor determined a motive for the bloodshed. The chief said, however, that investigators were examining a social media post that appeared to show the shooter at the scene and contained “some disturbing writings.”
Westman’s uncle, former Kentucky state lawmaker Bob Heleringer, said he did not know the accused shooter well and was confounded by the violence: “It’s an unspeakable tragedy.”
“We’re praying for my sister and her other children and also, obviously, for these poor, poor children,” Heleringer said by phone. He said he had last seen Westman at a family wedding three or four years ago.
“This was a deliberate act of violence against innocent children and other people worshipping. The sheer cruelty and cowardice of firing into a church full of children is absolutely incomprehensible,” said the police chief, who noted that a wooden plank was placed to barricade some of the side doors.
“I’ve been briefed on a shooting at Annunciation Catholic School and will continue to provide updates as we get more information,” Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said in a statement on social media. “I’m praying for our kids and teachers whose first week of school was marred by this horrific act of violence.”
Hennepin Healthcare, the main trauma hospital in Minneapolis, said in a statement they received 10 patients, including eight children — aged 6 through 14 — and two adults. Seven were considered to be in critical condition. Children’s Minnesota, a pediatric trauma hospital, said it admitted seven children ages 9 through 16.
Bill Bienemann, who lives a couple of blocks away and has long attended Mass at Annunciation Church, said he heard dozens of shots, perhaps as many as 50, over as long as four minutes.
“I was shocked. I said, ‘There’s no way that could be gunfire,’” he said. “There was so much of it. It was sporadic.”
Bienemann’s daughter, Alexandra, said she attended the school from kindergarten to 8th grade, finishing in 2014. After she heard of the shooting, she said she was shaking and crying, and her boss told her to take the day off.
“It breaks my heart, makes me sick to my stomach, knowing that there are people I know who are either injured or maybe even killed,” Alexandra Bienemann said. “It doesn’t make me feel safe at all in this community that I have been in for so long.”
The police chief said officers immediately responded to reports of the shooting, entered the church, rendered first aid and rescued some of the children hiding throughout the building.
Frey and Annunciation’s principal said teachers and children, too, responded heroically.
“Children were ducked down. Adults were protecting children. Older children were protecting younger children,” said the principal, Matt DeBoer.
Danielle Gunter, the mother of an eighth-grade boy who was shot, in a statement said her son told her a Minneapolis police officer “really helped him” by giving aid and a hug before her son got into an ambulance.
Amid a heavy uniformed law enforcement presence later Wednesday morning, children in dark green uniforms trickled out of the school with adults, giving lingering hugs and wiping away tears.
Vincent Francoual said his 11-year-old daughter, Chloe, survived the shooting by running downstairs to hide in a room with a table pressed against the door. But he still isn’t sure exactly how she escaped because she is struggling to communicate clearly about the traumatizing scene.
“She told us today that she thought she was going to die,” he said.
Gov. Tim Walz lamented that children just starting the school year “were met with evil and horror and death.” He and President Donald Trump ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff on state and federal buildings, respectively, and the White House said the two men spoke. The governor was the Democratic vice presidential nominee in last year’s election against Trump’s running mate, now Vice President JD Vance, a Republican.
Pope Leo XIV has sent a telegram of condolences over the shooting, calling it a “terrible tragedy” and saying he was praying for relatives of the dead and injured “at this extremely difficult time.”
Leo, history’s first American pope, said he was “profoundly saddened” to learn about the shooting at Annunciation Catholic School church. He sent his condolences “to all those affected by this terrible tragedy, especially the families now grieving the loss of a child.”
“I am heartbroken by the horrific violence at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis this morning,” U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar said on X. “My prayers are with the students, teachers, and families, and I am grateful for the first responders who are on the scene.”
President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social platform that he has been briefed on the shooting.
“The White House will continue to monitor this terrible situation,” Trump said. “Please join me in praying for everyone involved!”
Local and state police, FBI, federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents and other authorities converged on the school.
Dating to 1923, the pre-kindergarten through eighth grade school had an all-school Mass scheduled at 8:15 a.m. Wednesday morning, according to its website. Monday was the first day of school, and social media photos from that day show students in green uniforms greeting each other at bicycle racks, smiling for the camera and sitting together.
The gunfire was the latest in a series of fatal shootings in the city in less than 24 hours. One person was killed and six others were hurt in a shooting Tuesday afternoon outside a high school in Minneapolis. Hours later, two people died in two other shootings in the city.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
