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

[Skigh]

That could be the case, but most families in a situation like this want to do whatever they can to show their cooperation with authorities out of respect and empathy for the families of the dead and injured and to show their own horror at what their family member did. And to make it clear that in no way do they condone what their child did.

You are absolutely right. I was just trying to think of a reason why she would not have made a statement.

 

[arielilane]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1961150134596608126

 

[Arkay]

I wonder if the mother has “lawyered up” or if there’s a more innocuous reason, like grief. MOO

She may or may not have retained a lawyer, but I wouldn’t really see it as “lawyered up,” which to me kind of suggests a guilty party.

Of course as RW was 23 and purchased the weapons legally (so awful), the mother is completely not culpable for this horror.

I can see if she wants a lawyer to help her deal with media and LE attention, but if this were my child, I think I’d be inconsolable and unable to talk to anyone for some time.

Her child is dead, too, and the weight of what RW did must be unbearable.

The other great fear is that since RW idolized Adam Lanza in particular, it’s my recollection that AL killed his mother at home first before he went out to massacre the school kids.



JMO

 

[Ontario Mom]

You are absolutely right. I was just trying to think of a reason why she would not have made a statement.

I find it a little odd no one's mentioned the shooter's father. The mother seems to be newsworthy but have LE spoken to his father? Does the murderer's father have anything to say about all this?

 

[Sundog]

Emphasis mine.
Agreed with entire post.

In that specific (bolded) area, LE will surely want to take an intense look, and may have uncomfortable questions ?
I.e.,

• Who bought the weapons ?
• Who paid for them, as guns even used ones -- aren't cheap.
• For how long did they know R.W. was becoming unhinged ?
• Had they tried to warn LE but were rebuffed ?

That last point may work in the families' favor, imo.

I will not fault law enforcement either for digging deeply into this.
Two precious little lives are dead.
Murdered.
Their families in grief and maybe anger, and who can blame them ?
Imo.

LE have a responsibility to see that justice is done for the victims, regardless of how the mother is feeling. The FBI will want to interview her as well, as they are investigating these crimes as both domestic terrorism and a hate crime against the Catholic church. It clearly is both - since we know the murderer wrote the President's name on one of the bullets and mocked the children and their religion and targeted their church as they sat in the pews. And killed or critically injured 17 church and school members.

Some are saying that the shooter hated indiscriminately. That may be the case, but the shooter didn't target, kill and critically injure indiscriminately. The shooter targeted and killed and critically injured Catholic Christians. That's a hate crime against Catholic Christians.

 

[Gators North]

She may or may not have retained a lawyer, but I wouldn’t really seeing it as “lawyered up,” which to me kind of suggests a guilty party.

Of course as RW was 23 and purchased the weapons legally (so awful), the mother is completely not culpable for this horror.

I can see if she wants a lawyer to help her deal with media and LE attention, but if this were my child, I think I’d be inconsolable and unable to talk to anyone for some time.

Her child is dead, too, and the weight of what RW did must be unbearable.

JMO

Thinking about what you said, and I do agree. The horror and grief must be overwhelming.

 

[Synergizer Bunny]

I find it a little odd no one's mentioned the shooter's father. The mother seems to be newsworthy but have LE spoken to his father? Does the murderer's father have anything to say about all this?

I thought that I read an article where the police spoke to the father the day that the FBI was searching his home in Minnesota. Does anyone recall reading that?

JMO.

 

[Skigh]

Boy, 8, killed in US Catholic school shooting named - as victim's father brands attacker 'a coward'

Fletcher Merkel was one of two children killed during mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday.

news.sky.com

 

[Ontario Mom]

I thought that I read an article where the police spoke to the father the day that the FBI was searching his home in Minnesota. Does anyone recall reading that?

JMO.

I must have missed that. I haven't seen anything in the media about LE wanting to speak to him, only her. That just seems odd to me.

 

[Sundog]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1961150134596608126

I think the FBI will be successful in talking to the mother, given the nature of the investigation related to domestic terrorism which is a federal crime.

 

[Sundog]

I find it a little odd no one's mentioned the shooter's father. The mother seems to be newsworthy but have LE spoken to his father? Does the murderer's father have anything to say about all this?

Since it's a federal crime of domestic terrorism that is being investigated, I suspect that the FBI will show up on his doorstep, too.

 

[Chimera]

Boy, 8, killed in US Catholic school shooting named - as victim's father brands attacker 'a coward'

Fletcher Merkel was one of two children killed during mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday.

news.sky.com

Thanks for the link, @Skigh .

From the link :

Rest in gentle peace, Fletcher !!!

My utmost condolences to his heartbroken family.

 

[Chimera]

I have a friend whose daughter has serious mental health issues, as well as drug addiction. My friend is at the end of her rope because her daughter won’t take care of herself. She has now contracted HIV among other things but won’t go to doctor appointments and she has been hospitalized multiple times but can’t be held. She has been arrested more than once, then released since charges weren’t pressed - she had assaulted a family friend who didn’t want to further torture my friend. These situations are the worst because the people can’t be held or institutionalized and things don’t end well.

I really feel for this woman’s family because they probably tried to help her but didn’t get anywhere.

Yes, agreed 100 %.

So sorry for your friend's daughter.
Is there a legal way to get people help, like a 5150 ?
But if the patient is an adult then maybe not-- if they refuse to stay.
Imo.

 

[Synergizer Bunny]

DBM.

 

[Synergizer Bunny]

I must have missed that. I haven't seen anything in the media about LE wanting to speak to him, only her. That just seems odd to me.

When the police were searching James Westman's home, I read an article that said that he looked devastated outside his home while they were searching it and was talking to police. That's all that I read. It wasn't like it was a formal "sit down" with him at the station. I feel certain that the police did talk to him or he would have been mentioned in the press conference like the mother was.

JMO.

 

[Chimera]

Since it's a federal crime of domestic terrorism that is being investigated, I suspect that the FBI will show up on his doorstep, too.

Looks like a possibility. ^^^
Also add the hate crime which it sounds like it was, against Catholics and children.
Only my opinion.

 

[Megnut]

Reposting this article with information on the weapons.

*****

Police said Westman bought the weapons lawfully and they were "purchased recently."

At the scene of the crime, three shotgun shells were recovered, along with 116 rifle rounds. One live round of ammunition was recovered from a hand gun that appeared to malfunction while the shooter was using it, police said.

Additional firearms are also being recovered from the residences that are "related to the shooter," police said. No explosives were discovered at the scene, but a "smoke bomb" was located by officials, police said.

*****

What we know about Minnesota school shooting suspect Robin Westman

Officials have identified the suspect who they say opened fire outside of a church at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, killing two children and injuring 18 others.

abcnews.go.com

 

[Sundog]

Boy, 8, killed in US Catholic school shooting named - as victim's father brands attacker 'a coward'

Fletcher Merkel was one of two children killed during mass at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday.

news.sky.com

I've been dreading the identification of the two children who were killed, and knowing who they were and what they looked like and learning about their lives, along with their parents and family members. Fletcher Merkel, 8 years old. Loved fishing and cooking and other things. Cute and loving child. Parents who loved him more than life itself. God bless the Merkel family and Rest in God's Peace, young Fletcher.

 

[Sundog]

Reposting this article with information on the weapons.

*****

Police said Westman bought the weapons lawfully and they were "purchased recently."

At the scene of the crime, three shotgun shells were recovered, along with 116 rifle rounds. One live round of ammunition was recovered from a hand gun that appeared to malfunction while the shooter was using it, police said.

Additional firearms are also being recovered from the residences that are "related to the shooter," police said. No explosives were discovered at the scene, but a "smoke bomb" was located by officials, police said.

*****

What we know about Minnesota school shooting suspect Robin Westman

Officials have identified the suspect who they say opened fire outside of a church at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, killing two children and injuring 18 others.

abcnews.go.com

You mentioned that additional firearms were recovered from the residences that are related to the shooter - plural. So do you know if the shooter has more than one residence or were firearms found at more than one residence that the shooter had access to?

ebm

 

[Skigh]

Mother of Minneapolis shooter obtains lawyer after school massacre

Mary Westman, the mother of shooting suspect Robin Westman, 23, was a former employee at the Annunciation Church where the horror unfolded on Wednesday morning.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Westman was the youngest of three to Mary and her husband Jim.

The family lived in Hastings, Minnesota, before the parents divorced in 2013, according to court records.

It is not clear what Robin's father Jim did for a living.


Mary was a signatory to the killer's application in 2019, to change from Robert to Robin.

In the filing, she wrote that the move was to reflect that her child was '[identifying] as a woman'.

But, according to a former employee at Annunciation Catholic School, Mary struggled with her child's transition.

Mary had confided in the employee that Westman was transgender and identified as a girl and admitted: ‘I don’t know how I feel about this.’

'I think she was struggling with her Catholic faith... She didn’t know how she felt, but it weighed heavily on her,' the employee said.

Over the years, Mary had also reportedly voiced concerns over Westman's behavior at school and social issues.

Westman didn't have any friends in eighth grade and was disruptive in class, often being sent to the principal's office, the employee said.

Now, investigators are probing the shooter's motive for the attack.