Father of Wisconsin school shooter arrested, charged

The father of a teenage girl who killed a student and teacher at a Christian school in Madison, Wis., in December has been arrested and criminally charged.

Jeffrey Rupnow, 42, was charged with two felony counts of intent to sell a dangerous weapon to a person under 18 and one felony count of contributing to the delinquency of a child.

Rupnow’s daughter, 15-year-old Natalie Rupnow, opened fire on Dec. 16, 2024, at Abundant Life Christian School, killing a teacher and a 14-year-old student before killing herself. Six others were injured in the shooting.

According to a criminal complaint, Rupnow told police he had given his daughter two handguns as gifts and gave her the access code to his firearm safe. He also said the teenager became interested in guns after he took her shooting on a friend’s land.

Rupnow is the latest parent of a school shooter to face charges associated with an attack. Last year, the parents of Michigan school shooter Ethan Crumbley were convicted of involuntary manslaughter in their role in the attack that killed four students and injured seven others in 2021.

All charges against Rupnow are punishable by up to six years in prison each. He is scheduled for a court appearance on Friday.