The motive for the attack remains unclear. Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes told CNN on Tuesday that investigators are looking into online posts and a possible manifesto that the shooter may have left behind.
“We have been made aware of a manifesto, if you want to call it that, or some type of letter that’s been posted by someone who alleged to be her friend,” Barnes said.
Barnes said police are also examining her cell phone and computer to see if there were any transmissions between her and someone else. Other questions investigators are trying to answer are how the 15-year-old obtained a gun and whether her parents were negligent.
“That’s a question that we’ll have to answer with our district attorney’s office,” Barnes said. “But at this time, that does not appear to be the case”.
Police have confirmed the street of the shooter’s home in Madison. Online records show someone named Jeffrey Rupnow lives on the same street, and a Facebook profile belonging to a Jeff Rupnow in Madison shows photos of a newborn daughter named Natalie Lynn from 2009, 15 years ago.
Rupnow’s cover photo, posted in August, shows what appears to be a teenaged girl trap shooting with a shotgun at a local club. In a comment on the site, Jeff Rupnow says he and his child joined the club in the spring and “have been loving all every second of it”.
Rupnow could not be reached for comment.
