A shooter opened hearth Wednesday morning throughout Mass at a Minneapolis Catholic faculty, killing two kids and injuring 17 different individuals earlier than killing himself, officers stated.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara stated the shooter — armed with a rifle, shotgun and pistol — approached the aspect of the church and shot by the home windows towards the youngsters sitting within the pews throughout Mass on the Annunciation Catholic College on the town’s south aspect.
The varsity was evacuated, and college students’ households had been later directed to a “reunification zone” on the faculty. President Donald Trump and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz stated in separate social media posts that they’d been briefed on the capturing.
Pope Leo XIV has despatched a telegram of condolences over the capturing, calling it a “horrible tragedy” and saying he was praying for kin of the useless and injured “at this extraordinarily tough time.”
Leo, historical past’s first American pope and a local of south suburban Dolton, stated he was “profoundly saddened” to study in regards to the capturing at Annunciation Catholic College church.
He despatched his condolences “to all these affected by this horrible tragedy, particularly the households now grieving the loss of a kid.”
The Chicago-born Leo stated he was praying for these injured and the medical groups and first responders on the scene, and for the broader Catholic neighborhood.
The telegram was signed by the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, and was addressed to Archbishop Bernard Hebda, the archbishop of St. Paul-Minneapolis.
In the meantime, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, Archbishop of Chicago, stated whereas shootings have change into commonplace, this one hits near house as a result of it occurred at a Catholic faculty with the gunman capturing by the home windows of a church the place kids and academics had been praying at the beginning of a brand new faculty yr.
“If anywhere ought to have been protected, it ought to have been there. If any time ought to have been protected, it ought to have been then. Tragically, we all know no place or time when Individuals — even kids — are protected from the curse of gun violence,” Cupich stated in a written assertion. “Whereas we be a part of our prayers with others that these injured in physique and spirit will heal and that the murdered kids will likely be obtained into heaven, we should additionally cry out for motion to stop even yet another such tragedy.”
Cupich stated extra must be accomplished to restrict the provision of weapons.
“The details are clear. Weapons are plentiful and customary sense makes an attempt to restrict their availability have been largely rejected within the identify of a freedom not present in our structure. Cutbacks in funding for well being care and social service applications will solely exacerbate a nationwide psychological well being disaster and improve alienation,” Cupich stated. “We due to this fact pray for individuals who maintain the ability to make the protection of our individuals a nationwide precedence.”
A spokesperson for the Chicago Archdiocese added that its colleges are ready for such incidents.
“We’re conscious that such tragedies have occurred in colleges of each degree and in each kind of neighborhood all through the nation. All archdiocese colleges have complete disaster plans and protocols and leaders reviewed them throughout in-service conferences held in preparation for the brand new faculty yr,” the Archdiocese stated in a press release. “Via our safety officer, we’ve glorious channels of communication with civil authorities at each degree.”
In keeping with Minneapolis police, two kids ages 8 and 10 had been killed the place they sat within the pews. Seventeen different individuals had been injured, 14 of them kids. Two of these kids are in important situation. All injured kids are anticipated to outlive, O’Hara stated throughout a information convention.
O’Hara recognized the shooter as 23-year-old Robin Westman, including that Westman had no prior felony historical past and legislation enforcement believes he acted alone. O’Hara stated authorities are going by on-line writings attributed to Westman, posted across the time of the capturing. The content material has now been taken down.
Based in 1923, Annunciation Catholic College had 391 college students enrolled for the 2023-24 faculty yr, in line with the Nationwide Middle for Schooling Statistics. The varsity goes from pre-Okay to eighth grade.
