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Madison, Wisconsin, school shooting leaves 2 dead, 6 injured; juvenile suspect dead

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Madison, Wisconsin, school shooting leaves 2 dead, 6 injured; juvenile suspect dead

Police identified the shooter who they said opened fire inside a private Christian school in Madison, Wisconsin, killing a teacher and teen student and injuring six others on Monday.

Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said 15-year-old Natalie Rupnow, who goes by Samantha, opened fire inside Abundant Life Christian School.

Barnes said the shooting took place during study hall with multiple grades in the room. 

Police said evidence suggests the shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Barnes added officials are speaking with Rupnow’s father, who he said is cooperating with police.

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Emergency vehicles are parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024.  (AP Photo/Scott Bauer)

Barnes said a second grade student called 911 to report the shooting. 

“At 10:57 a.m., a second grade student called 911 to report a shooting had occurred at school. We’ll let that sink in for a minute… A second grade student call 911 at 10:57 a.m. to report a shooting at the school,” Barnes said. 

Barnes added that two students are still in critical condition with life-threatening injuries. A teacher and three other students were taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Barnes said two of those individuals have since been released. 

The teacher and student that were killed in the shooting have not yet been identified.

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Barnes said Rupnow used a handgun in the shooting. He said police have not yet determined a motive for the attack.

“Every child, every person in that building is a victim and will be a victim forever. We need to figure out and try to piece together what exactly happened,” Barnes said. 

Emergency vehicles are staged outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting, Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Barnes said all students were reunified with their parents.

“A lot has gone on today. I can tell you that it’s not over. I can tell you that our officers and our detectives and our investigators will have to be told to go home. No one is thinking about going home right now, and they’re going to still work as long as they can to find as much information as they can,” Barnes said. 

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“This is going to be a day that will be etched in a collective minds and memories of all those for Madison.”

Barnes said he did not believe that the school, which serves 200 students according to the school’s website, had a resource officer. It was also revealed that the school did not have metal detectors, but did have cameras and other security protocols.

Police said they train for active shooter situations “almost quarterly,” and that they had most recently conducted the training roughly two weeks ago.

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“This is something you prepare for, but that you hope you never have to do,” a police spokesman told reporters. “Today is a sad, sad day.”

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President Biden spoke with Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers and Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway following the shooting at Abundant Life Christian School and offered his “continued support to help the impacted community.”

Biden also released a statement and said the events that unfolded in Madison were “shocking and unconscionable.”

“From Newtown to Uvalde, Parkland to Madison, to so many other shootings that don’t receive attention – it is unacceptable that we are unable to protect our children from this scourge of gun violence. We cannot continue to accept it as normal. Every child deserves to feel safe in their classroom. Students across our country should be learning how to read and write – not having to learn how to duck and cover,” Biden said.

“We can never accept senseless violence that traumatizes children, their families, and tears entire communities apart.”

Biden added that he and the First Lady were “praying for all the victims, including the teacher and teenage student who were killed and those who sustained injuries.”

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“We are grateful for the first responders who quickly arrived on the scene, and the FBI is supporting local law enforcement efforts. At my direction, my team has reached out to local officials to offer further support as needed,” Biden said.

Police investigate as emergency vehicles are parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting, Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

Vice President Kamala Harris also issued a statement saying “senseless gun violence has once again visited our classrooms as students and teachers in Madison, WI had their last week of school before Christmas break tragically interrupted by a deadly shooting.”

“Doug and I are mourning the student and teacher who were killed and we are praying for all those who were injured, including those who remain hospitalized. We are also thinking of the young people and families who have had their lives forever changed by this act of gun violence,” Harris said.

“And we are sending our gratitude to the educators, members of law enforcement, first responders, and medical professionals who quickly and selflessly jumped into action to ensure that even more lives were not lost in this community,” she continued.

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MASS SHOOTER’S FAMILY IDENTIFIES MISSED WARNING SIGNS BEFORE MASSACRE LEFT 18 DEAD, VOWS TO RAISE AWARENESS

Emergency vehicles are parked outside the Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin, where multiple injuries were reported following a shooting on Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Scott Bauer)

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., posted a statement on his X account calling the “violence in our culture” disturbing.

“Our hearts go out today to the students and faculty of the Abundant Life Christian School. The violence in our culture is disturbing, and it must be dealt with. We are praying for the families of those who lost their lives and the entire Madison community,” Johnson wrote.

Evers ordered the flags of the United States and the state of Wisconsin to half-staff across the state immediately until sunset on Sun., Dec. 22, 2024.

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“There are no words to describe the devastation and heartbreak we feel today after the school shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison this morning,” Evers said in a statement.

“As a father, a grandfather, and as governor, it is unthinkable that a kid or an educator might wake up and go to school one morning and never come home. This should never happen, and I will never accept this as a foregone reality or stop working to change it.”

The school also acknowledged the shooting in a post on Facebook, requesting prayers from the community.

“Prayers Requested! Today, we had an active shooter incident at ALCS. We are in the midst of following up. We will share information as we are able. Please pray for our Challenger Family,” the school wrote.

Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wis., where multiple injuries and deaths were reported following a shooting, Monday, Dec. 16, 2024. (Google Maps)

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A former student of the school, Aaron Nienaber, told Fox News Digital that he attended high school at Abundant Life Christian from 2000 to 2004 and was shocked and saddened to see this happen at a place he cherished. 

“It’s very sad to see this happening at a place where I have so many fond memories with the students and faculty, and especially playing on the sports teams. This is not something that anyone would have ever seen coming at this small tight-knit school and community,” Nienaber said. 

The FBI’s Milwaukee bureau says it has deployed agents to the scene to assist in investigating.

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Illinois

Chicago property taxes jump — but unevenly

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Chicago property taxes jump — but unevenly



Some communities saw their bills rise 75% or more.

The median property tax bill for Chicago homeowners rose by a record last year, and some parts of the city saw much steeper increases than others.

The citywide median rise was 16.7%, according to a report from the Cook County Treasurer’s office on bills for tax year 2024.

Many poor communities in Chicago saw the largest increases. In 15 areas on the South and West sides, property taxes shot up 30% because of rising home values. In West Garfield Park, North Lawndale, Englewood, West Pullman and West Englewood, property tax bills rose 75% or more.

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Chicago homeowners have suffered in recent years. While property taxes did increase in some Cook County suburbs in 2024, city homeowners felt the bulk of the pain. That’s because assessed values on downtown commercial buildings fell 7.2%, reducing taxes on those properties.

Lower commercial assessments don’t reduce what the city expects to collect in property taxes — it just means homeowners pay a larger share.

Other reasons for Chicago homeowners’ high bills this year included a 6.3% increase in the levy, or what taxing bodies request. That rise was driven by a larger request from Chicago Public Schools and a higher amount earmarked for Tax Increment Financing districts. TIF districts collected 10.4% more year over year in 2024, totaling over $1.3 billion.

For 2024 the total Cook County levy was $19.2 billion, up about 4.8% from the previous year. The Chicago-area inflation rate was closer to 3.5%.

Cook County property taxes have outpaced inflation for a long time. Since 1995, they’ve gone up 181%, from $6.8 billion in 1995 to $19.2 billion in 2024, according to the county treasurer. Adjusted for inflation, that’s a 48% increase. If property taxes had risen on pace with inflation, the 2024 levy would have been $13 billion rather than $19.2 billion.

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This rising burden can’t continue. Since 2019, more than 1,000 Cook County homeowners — including 125 senior citizens — have lost their homes and all their equity over a property tax debt smaller than the price of a 10-year-old Chevy Impala.

The U.S. Supreme Court has found the practice of taking more than the tax owed to be unconstitutional, but the Illinois General Assembly has yet to change the law to stop it. Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas delayed the property tax lien sale scheduled for last August, but it’s now set for March.

Of the Illinois residents who moved out in 2024, 95% went to lower-tax states. Lawmakers must reduce the property tax burden. They should cap how long TIFs can last and limit how many times they can be extended. Returning that money to general use would bring much-needed transparency and real property tax relief for Illinois residents.

Also, legislators are allowed to work as property tax appeal lawyers, enabling them to profit from ever-growing tax hikes. Imprisoned former Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan did that, as did former Chicago Ald. Ed Burke. This practice should not be prohibited.

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The best way to reduce the property tax burden is to reform its largest driver: public-sector pensions. In Chicago, 80% of property taxes go toward its growing pension debt. Rather than seeking to control spending, Gov. J.B. Pritzker recently signed a “pension sweetener” for Chicago police and firefighters that will increase liabilities by $11.1 billion.

Reforming the state constitution would allow for moderate pension changes, increasing the fiscal health of those systems and reducing the property tax burden on Chicago homeowners.

Until changes are made, Cook County homeowners will continue to see their property tax bills climb.





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Indiana

Heavy rain soaks central Indiana, but drought relief uneven across the state

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Heavy rain soaks central Indiana, but drought relief uneven across the state


Central Indiana has seen a very wet start to March, with several rounds of rain and storms moving through the region over the past few days. In fact, the city of Indianapolis has already received more rain in the first four days of the month than it typically gets during the entire month of March.

So far this month, Indianapolis has recorded 3.90 inches of rainfall, which already exceeds the normal March monthly average of 3.79 inches. Much of that rain came during a widespread soaking on Tuesday, when a strong system pushed steady showers and thunderstorms across the state.

Some of the highest totals over the past three days have been recorded across central Indiana. Rain gauges show 5.86 inches in Marion County, 5.02 inches in Morgan County, 4.97 inches in Hancock County, 4.95 inches in Shelby County, 4.57 inches in Johnson County, and 4.26 inches in Hendricks County. These totals represent a significant amount of rainfall in a short period of time and have left many areas with saturated ground and standing water in low spots.

Despite the widespread rainfall, the impact on drought conditions has been somewhat uneven across the state. According to the latest drought monitor, the areas that received the heaviest rain over the past few days are largely the same areas that were already in relatively good shape in terms of moisture levels. Meanwhile, parts of northern Indiana that have been dealing with more persistent dryness have seen much lighter totals.

Cities such as Kokomo, Lafayette, and Muncie have generally picked up less rain compared to areas farther south. Forecast models suggest that pattern may continue over the next several days.

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Additional rainfall is expected through Thursday, with another round possible around midday Saturday. Current projections show the best chance for another inch or more of rain focusing once again across the southern half of the state, while northern Indiana may see lower totals.

That means while the recent rain has certainly helped improve soil moisture in many areas, it may not fully address the lingering dryness farther north. For now, the pattern remains active, and Hoosiers should expect more wet weather before the system finally begins to move out later this weekend.



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Iowa

Iowa women’s wrestling star Kylie Welker on competing for official NCAA championship

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Iowa women’s wrestling star Kylie Welker on competing for official NCAA championship


Wrestling-Women

March 5, 2026

Iowa women’s wrestling star Kylie Welker on competing for official NCAA championship

March 5, 2026

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Kylie Welker chats with NCAA Digital’s Sophie Starkey about the success of Iowa women’s wrestling and the possibility of winning the inaugural NCAA sanctioned championship.



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