Nine days before Christmas, during the last week before holiday break, another school shooting occurred.
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes said Monday, Dec. 16, that a student at a private Christian school in Madison, Wis., had killed two people and injured six others on campus, and the gunman is dead. Barnes later clarified the death toll had risen from three to five. Officers were notified of an active shooter at Abundant Life Christian School at 10:57 a.m. According to Barnes, officers found the suspected shooter dead without firing their weapons. The injuries of those in the hospital range from minor to potentially fatal.
Police had blocked off roads around the school Monday afternoon. Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives also responded to help local law enforcement. Abundant Life Christian School is nondenominational with about 390 students from kindergarten through high school, according to its website.
“We are praying for the kids, educators, and entire Abundant Life school community as we await more information and are grateful for the first responders who are working quickly to respond,” Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said.
There have been at least 83 school shootings in the United States this year as of Dec. 16. Twenty-seven were on college campuses, and 56 were on K-12 school grounds. The incidents left 38 people dead and at least 115 others injured, according to CNN’s analysis of events reported by the Gun Violence Archive, Education Week and Everytown for Gun Safety.
School shootings decreased during the first year of the pandemic when schools closed for COVID-19. Since then, shootings have increased annually. Each year from 2021 through 2024 set a new record.
In September, a shooting happened at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga. Four people were killed, and at least nine others were injured in the Sept. 4 attack. The suspect — 14-year-old Colt Gray — was arrested without incident. Police also arrested his father.
