MN- Minneapolis, mass shooting at church, multiple fatalities, possible explosive device found. Aug 2025

[Stunned]

"Church shooter purchased guns LEGALLY.​

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara announced
that the shooter, Robin Westman, 23, legally purchased the guns she used to kill two students.

'As the weapons used to perpetrate this horrific attack,
it was a rifle, a shotgun and a pistol.

All three had been lawfully purchased by the shooter',
O'Hara said.

'At this stage, we believe that the shooter had acted alone'.

FBI investigating shooting as domestic terrorism and hate crime against Catholics​

FBI Director Kash Patel
provided an update on X,
revealing his department is investigating Wednesday's shooting as domestic terrorism and a hate crime.

'The FBI is investigating this shooting as an act of domestic terrorism and hate crime targeting Catholics',
Patel said."

School shooter's uncle says he wishes killer 'shot me instead'

Police said Robin Westman opened fire at a Catholic church on Wednesday morning, killing two children. Westman's yearbook entry at the associated school has been unearthed.

www.dailymail.co.uk

How on earth was anyone allowed to by so many military styles of guns? Those aren't for hunting animal! Those are for hunting people! Something has got to change and I say it starts with our government and their beloved gun lobbyists!

 

[Arkay]

"The Minneapolis School Shooter's rifle had "Thank God for Breivik" and "Brenton 4ever" carved into it, along with the name of Pittsburgh Synagogue Murderer Robert Bowers, and OKC bomber Timothy McVeigh."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1960777674466713831

Oh my God! It’s all too much.

 

[Inthedetails]

Occasionally it appears a parent can be charged, but this shooter, at age 23, was an adult. Parents not responsible.

?? I never mentioned (or even thought) the parents would be held responsible.

jmopinion

 

[indicolite22]

"The Minneapolis School Shooter's rifle had "Thank God for Breivik" and "Brenton 4ever" carved into it, along with the name of Pittsburgh Synagogue Murderer Robert Bowers, and OKC bomber Timothy McVeigh."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1960777674466713831

It appears that this latest shooter's role models were all right wing extremists, yet he purportedly wished to kill the current president. IMO the perp looked up to the worst mass murderers by number of victims and tried to copy others who targeted places of worship.

 

[Acedia]

I'm sorry if this has already been addressed, but shouldn't the shooter be referred to has "she" since the name and gender identify was changed legally some time ago?

Yes, I apologize, I didn't see they were female until after my post.

Note:
As much as the shooter doesn't deserve my respect, disrespecting one person's pronouns sends a message to any and everyone who reads your comment that you might just be disrespectful about all people's pronouns.

 

[blukat]

It’s particularly terrifying to me that these unfortunately necessary school shooter drills, designed to save lives in case of an attack, instead in this case served as an inspiration to this shooter.

Obsessed with school shootings since childhood, as self-professed by this shooter?
Hero worship of Adam Lanza?

As a middle school teacher I’ve conducted my share of school shooter drills along with all the other disaster preparedness drills, but it didn’t occur to me that any students would consider school shooting as “goals.”

Who knows who’s out there now, a young child also seeing this as a cool and exciting thing to do?

I’m with those on the side of keeping the names and pictures anonymous. Take away what they envision as future fame and glory.

JMO

Unfortunately we live in an age where there are social media platforms that promote the same ideology that this person clearly was into. There are people with a lot of money profiting from this. And many Discords and other places online. It's impossible to keep it anonymous any more. I wish it was possible, but for some that makes it even more attractive.

Instead we need to keep pushing how horrific these actions are, how cruel it is to promote this terrible harm to all of us. And how horrible each person that does this is. Talk about the pain it causes. Other countries have successfully dealt with all of this. It's not impossible to do, except those who profit from it work hard to keep it happening.

JMO

oh yeah, if you are in the US and can vote, do it.

 

[indicolite22]

Oh my God! It’s all too much.

Bullying certainly couldn't be used as an excuse here. This sounds more like following a death cult.

 

[Serononin]

"His gear was also inscribed with the slogan "6 million wasn't enough." A reference to the Nazi extermination of Jews in the Holocaust."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1960777676760998217

"Other school shooters were written on his ammo clips * Charles Whitman, 1966 Texas Tower sniper. * Marc Lépine, 1989 Montreal École Polytechnique killer. * Pekka-Eric Auvinen. 2007 Finnish school shooter."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1960808136148967437

"Other school shooters were written on his ammo clips, continued... * Adam Lanza, 2012 Sandy Hook school murderer. * James Holmes, 2012 Aurora Theater shooter. * Vladislav Roslyakov, 2018 Crimean school shooter."


"Ammo clips also contained additional callout of Breivik and "-51" (also on rifle)--reference to the 51 people murdered by Brenton Tarrant in his 2019 killing spree at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand."

https://twitter.com/x/status/1960809569317478840

Also reporter Aaron Rupar's children may have been at that school when it happened. His kids are okay but what a horrific thing for them and everyone to experience.

(sorry if the image links are a mess. not use to posting on here and I don't use X any more. but I felt this was important information)

Did this person think they were going to keep their name in the press if they made their motive/politics/state of mind as difficult to understand as possible? It all reads like something that would be written by an "edgy" 13-year-old who's just figured out how to get a reaction from people and thinks that any attention is good attention, not an adult with a reasonably coherent worldview. To be honest, though, I'm glad I'm not the kind of person that a mindset like theirs would make sense to.

(I've seen some conflicting info about the shooter's pronouns so I'm just gonna go with 'they' for now)

 

[Acedia]

How does someone get this messed up and no one either sees it or can help them? Or is it that it can be seen but there is nothing that can be done until something like this happens? I am at a loss.

The following is not any sort of insult on day-to-day Americans. We didn't single-handedly create the culture we're stuck in now. We are dealing with the consequences of multiple generations of self-centered thinking.

We live in a devastatingly sick society. And I mean sick as in ill, not well, unhealthy.

Studies show America grows evermore individualistic every day (Individualism: A Deeply American Philosophy - FEE). It is driven into us that we are only worth anything if we make a lot of money, and if you feel very depressed or anxious the attitude is "deal with it and push through, don't be a baby" OR go to the psych ward and potentially be mistreated or potentially lose your job/housing/etc. Or make an appointment with a psychologist, psychiatrist, or therapist, and enjoy the 6 month+ waitlist and jump through tons of hoops with insurance and maybe accrue life-changing debt.

People feel no real sense of community, they don't feel like they belong anywhere, etc. Many of us stare at screens day in and day out. By what this person wrote on the guns, etc., I can tell they were WAY (x100) too chronically online. People are letting their kids be raised by the internet and not interfering at critical developmental ages when obsessions/addictions to internet develop. Sometimes they do not interfere because they are afraid of angering their kids, but often, it's because they're lazy parents who are uninterested in their kids' thoughts and feelings and actually feel grateful the internet is there to distract them so they do not have to actually parent. Look at Ethan Crumbley.

This isn't just my opinion. A lot of this I learned in grad school just recently. The studies are all showing this. Americans need to take an excruciatingly long look in the mirror.

In some cases, people are genetically predisposed to certain illnesses OR their environment and upbringing breeds a high level of self-hatred that turns into all-consuming rage, and our society's illness exacerbates their symptoms and their suffering instead of heals them.

 

[Inthedetails]

Not really a school shooting per se. 8:15 All School Mass. Most likely no drill in case of a church mass shooting, which this was.

Even if not in an actual schoolroom, it does seem that staff and students made use of active-shooter practice and applied what they learned to a church setting:

Speaking to Annunciation students, parents and staff, an emotional principal Matt DeBoer said, “You are so brave, and I am so sorry that this happened to us today.”

“Within seconds of this situation beginning, our teachers were heroes. Children were ducked down, adults were protecting children, older children were protecting younger children and, as we heard earlier, it could have been significantly worse without their heroic action,” he added.

Crowds of mourners pack vigils after shooting killed two children, wounded 17

Police identified Robin Westman, 23, as the shooter, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the scene. Sources told the Minnesota Star Tribune that Westman’s mother once worked at Annunciation and Westman was once a student there.

www.startribune.com

 

[Acedia]

How absolutely awful to write all these words praising your mother's parenting, hard work, love, and effort in your life and then decide to try and commit a mass murder at your mom's JOB. The fellow people she works with and the children she gives her energy to every single day. I mean... I cannot imagine her grief, anger, devastation. Wow

I am editing to say I cannot find if she used to work there or currently does. Either way, horrendous

 

[Acedia]

What is the incidence of anti-trans hate crimes? Is there anywhere with statistics?

GLAAD ALERT DESK DOCUMENTS MORE THAN 900 ANTI-LGBTQ INCIDENTS IN THE PAST YEAR ACROSS THE U.S. | GLAAD

932 incidents counted in 49 states and Washington, DC 52% of incidents targeted transgender and gender nonconforming people (New York, NY - June 2, 2025) – GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, is releasing the third annual...

glaad.org

Of the 932 total anti-LGBTQ+ incidents tracked, 52% specifically targeted transgender and gender non-conforming people. This reflects a 14% year-over-year increase in anti-trans incidents. Due to inconsistent collection methods, these statistics are considered incomplete, and the actual number of incidents is believed to be much higher.

 

[Inthedetails]

People feel no real sense of community, they don't feel like they belong anywhere, etc

snipped

I hear ya, I really do! I often have the same lament! But, let's look at the community of Annunciation. They are absolutely reacting as a group, comforting, helping, being kind. I have a local connection there and can attest it is real, imo.

But to use an MSM source, here is one small example:

Twin Cities restaurants responded to Wednesday’s tragedy the way they know best: through hospitality. The Lowbrow offered gift certificates for meals to victims and families of victims who are regulars of the south Minneapolis restaurant, asking friends and neighbors of the affected to get the gift cards or meals to those who need them. “Our hearts are heavy; full of rage and sorrow,” the Lowbrow wrote on Facebook. “South Mpls: Know that we love you and hope to be there for you in the coming days and weeks. We want to be a place for you to break bread and grieve.” Red Wagon Pizza, about a mile from Annunciation, is closing early Wednesday, at 7 p.m., so team members can attend a candlelight vigil. And El Sazon Cocina & Tragos, which is around the corner from the school, offered their restaurant as “a place to sit, to gather, to grieve, or simply to share a meal with others. If you need comfort, a listening ear, or just a reminder that this community cares with you, our doors are open.”

Crowds of mourners pack vigils after shooting killed two children, wounded 17

Police identified Robin Westman, 23, as the shooter, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the scene. Sources told the Minnesota Star Tribune that Westman’s mother once worked at Annunciation and Westman was once a student there.

www.startribune.com

 

[Acedia]

How on earth was anyone allowed to by so many military styles of guns? Those aren't for hunting animal! Those are for hunting people! Something has got to change and I say it starts with our government and their beloved gun lobbyists!

Couldn't agree more. There's no good reason to own military style guns as a civilian. Tragically, it will be a difficult and maybe impossible fight to get Americans to enact any sort of meaningful gun legislation because they're too busy pointing their fingers at everyone and everything else. They view gun legislation as an "attack on liberty" instead of what it is - common sense. The mass shootings our country endures is the real attack on liberty.

snipped

I hear ya, I really do! I often have the same lament! But, let's look at the community of Annunciation. They are absolutely reacting as a group, comforting, helping, being kind. I have a local connection there and can attest it is real, imo.

But to use an MSM source, here is one small example:

Twin Cities restaurants responded to Wednesday’s tragedy the way they know best: through hospitality. The Lowbrow offered gift certificates for meals to victims and families of victims who are regulars of the south Minneapolis restaurant, asking friends and neighbors of the affected to get the gift cards or meals to those who need them. “Our hearts are heavy; full of rage and sorrow,” the Lowbrow wrote on Facebook. “South Mpls: Know that we love you and hope to be there for you in the coming days and weeks. We want to be a place for you to break bread and grieve.” Red Wagon Pizza, about a mile from Annunciation, is closing early Wednesday, at 7 p.m., so team members can attend a candlelight vigil. And El Sazon Cocina & Tragos, which is around the corner from the school, offered their restaurant as “a place to sit, to gather, to grieve, or simply to share a meal with others. If you need comfort, a listening ear, or just a reminder that this community cares with you, our doors are open.”

Crowds of mourners pack vigils after shooting killed two children, wounded 17

Police identified Robin Westman, 23, as the shooter, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the scene. Sources told the Minnesota Star Tribune that Westman’s mother once worked at Annunciation and Westman was once a student there.

www.startribune.com

I'm just quoting what data and studies show about young Americans.

Thanks for providing this comforting news. I really love Minnesota. So many great people there, truly.

 

[airportwoman]

Minneapolis Catholic school shooter: What we know

The person who opened fire on a Catholic school Wednesday in Minneapolis has been identified.

www.kare11.com

Law enforcement sources said Westman grew up in Richfield and that his mother was an employee at Annunciation School.

That makes things even worse!

 

[Dotta]

"I just want my Mom"

https://twitter.com/x/status/1960822730686603330

 

[airportwoman]

?? I never mentioned (or even thought) the parents would be held responsible.

jmopinion

Adults sure can be held responsible, if they were accessories on any level.

 

[PrairieWind]

GLAAD ALERT DESK DOCUMENTS MORE THAN 900 ANTI-LGBTQ INCIDENTS IN THE PAST YEAR ACROSS THE U.S. | GLAAD

932 incidents counted in 49 states and Washington, DC 52% of incidents targeted transgender and gender nonconforming people (New York, NY - June 2, 2025) – GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, is releasing the third annual...

glaad.org

Of the 932 total anti-LGBTQ+ incidents tracked, 52% specifically targeted transgender and gender non-conforming people. This reflects a 14% year-over-year increase in anti-trans incidents. Due to inconsistent collection methods, these statistics are considered incomplete, and the actual number of incidents is believed to be much higher.

Was this an anti LGBTQ crime? No. Lets not deflect from the victims today.

 

[Inthedetails]

Adults sure can be held responsible, if they were accessories on any level.

Is that what happened in this case?

I mentioned the shooters's note to her parents was unkind, imo, and now the converstaion is about them being charged? Somehow wires got crossed.

jmopinion

 

[airportwoman]

Is that what happened in this case?

I mentioned the shooters's note to her parents was unkind, imo, and now the converstaion is about them being charged? Somehow wires got crossed.

jmopinion

Someone said that the parents may not be held responsible because the (alleged, yeah, I know) shooter was 23, but that doesn't guarantee they won't be.