Nerves are tense again after the massacre at a school in the American state of Wisconsin. The perpetrator: a 15-year-old girl. She shot a classmate and a teacher, injured six other people and ultimately committed suicide.
The teen arrived at school on time and pulled out the gun about three hours into the school day, officials said. When the shooting started, students locked themselves in their classrooms and “behaved very well,” said Barbara Wiers, department head at Abundant Life. “Students practice what to do in the event of a shooting, and they are usually told that this is just a drill,” Wiers said at the press conference. “They were clearly scared… when they heard ‘lockdown, lockdown’ and nothing else, they knew it was real.”
“The shooter has now been identified as a 15-year-old,” said Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes. The shooting occurred at Abundant Life Christian School, a private institution in Madison that serves about 400 students in kindergarten through 12th grade. “She was a student at the school and evidence suggests she died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.” Names have not been released. A school shooting by a girl remains a rarity: research shows that only three percent of school shootings are committed by women.
What was the motive?
A motive for the violent act, which authorities say took place in a room at the school, is not yet known. When asked, Barnes did not comment on the possible background to the crime. But he emphasized that the police did not shoot. The gunman’s family is cooperating with investigators, police said.
Two students suffered life-threatening injuries, Barnes said at a news conference. A teacher and three other students were shot and are expected to survive. Two of those victims have been released from the hospital, Barnes said. During an earlier press conference, there was ‘incorrect’ talk of at least five deaths.
Biden: “Shocking and unconscionable”
The White House said US President Joe Biden had been briefed on the situation in Madison. Biden called the act “shocking and unconscionable.” He called on Congress to take action and tighten gun laws. It is “unacceptable that we cannot protect our children from this scourge of gun violence.”
In the US, fatal shootings are a part of everyday life. Firearms are readily available and widely distributed in the United States. Larger attacks, for example at schools, in supermarkets, in nightclubs or at major events, regularly lead to discussions about tightening gun laws – so far without any success. Republicans have been preventing a substantial tightening of gun laws in the US for years.
322 shootings at American schools this year
According to the K-12 School Shooting Database website, there have been 322 school shootings in the U.S. this year. That’s the second-highest number since 1966, according to this database, surpassed only by last year’s total of 349 shootings.
The country’s top health official declared gun violence a national health crisis in June. According to authorities, thousands of people die every year from injuries caused by firearms – either through someone else’s fault or their own. Gun injuries are one of the most common causes of death among children and youth.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
