Minneapolis, Minnesota
A Hometown Tragedy
Minneapolis mourns 2 children killed in Catholic school shooting
August 28, 2025
- Amna Nawaz:Mourners gathered since sunrise today outside the Catholic school in Minneapolis where two students were killed.
- Geoff Bennett:We now know the name of one of those victims, Fletcher Merkel. The 8-year-old’s father, Jesse Merkel, spoke outside the church this afternoon, where his son was killed.Jesse Merkel, Father of Shooting Victim: As our family and the Annunciation community grieve and try to make sense of such a senseless act of violence, please remember Fletcher for the person he was and not the act that ended his life. Give your kids an extra hug and kiss today.We love you, Fletcher. You will always be with us.
- Geoff Bennett:Special correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro has our report from Minneapolis on the aftermath of the school shooting.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Across the Twin Cities, a community mourns, coming together in vigils today and overnight to remember the young lives lost in the latest mass shooting to target school children in America.Mourners signed two crosses for the 8-year-old and the 10-year-old killed at a back-to-school mass at Annunciation Catholic School. Parishioners and former students were still reeling from the attack on the church, which has been part of the fabric of the neighborhood for more than a century.
- Clarissa Garcia, Student, Annunciation Catholic School:I heard something really loud. I thought it was fireworks in the church. And then I saw the shooting, and then — and I was like, oh, my gosh. I’m so scared.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Fifteen-year-old Evan Cook is a former student.
- Evan Cook, Former Student, Annunciation Catholic School:I was shocked when I heard about the situation. Like, if you’re not safe at church, then where are you safe?Patrick Scallen, Lives Near Site of Shooting: It’s about a half-a-block away.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Patrick Scallen ran to the church, which his family has attended for generations, when he heard the gunshots.
- Patrick Scallen:There were three in particular that walked almost right into me. And one girl came up to me and said: “I have been shot in the neck.”
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:He comforted them until first responders came on the scene.
- Patrick Scallen:They were crying and they were panicked. And I just knew that they needed some help. And nobody else was there to help them. And right away the girl that got shot in the head asked me to hold her hand, and I held it the whole time. And they were — they were all worried.And they said: “We just want my mom and dad.”
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Three adults and 15 children were injured in the attack. One of those children remains in critical condition, according to hospital officials.Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said this moment called for more serious action.Jacob Frey (D), Mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota: We need a statewide and a federal ban on high-capacity magazines.(Applause)
- Jacob Frey:There is no reason that someone should be able to reel off 30 shots before they even have to reload. We’re not talking about your father’s hunting rifle here. We’re talking about guns that are built to pierce armor and kill people.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Authorities say the shooter died by a self-inflicted gunshot wound behind the church, where police say the shooter’s mother previously worked. Police say 116 rifle rounds were fired into the church and one live round was recovered from a handgun that appeared to have malfunctioned.
- Brian O’Hara, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Police Chief:Literally hundreds of pieces of evidence have been recovered thus far, which include electronic devices that will be further searched and processed. It now becomes our job collectively with all of law enforcement to process that evidence.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Police say the suspect left behind a manifesto scheduled to post on YouTube during the shooting. It was removed by law enforcement.Joe Thompson, Acting U.S. Attorney for Minnesota: The shooter expressed hate towards Black people. The shooter expressed hate towards Mexican people. The shooter expressed hate towards Christian people. The shooter expressed hate towards Jewish people. In short, the shooter appeared to hate all of us.There appears to be only one group that the shooter didn’t hate. The shooter idolized some of the most notorious school shooters and mass murderers in our country’s history.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:As authorities work to find a motive, survivors recount the horror.
- Javen Willis, Student, Annunciation Catholic School:All we hear is pow, pow, pow. And my classmates — like, some of my classmates thought it was confetti because they saw the glass from the stained glass windows flying. But right when I heard the shots, I knew I just needed to get down and try to keep everyone safe.Shea McAdaragh, Parent of Annunciation Catholic School Shooting: The terror you feel in a situation like this is incredible. It’s crippling.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Shea McAdaragh was standing just inside the church entrance when the gunfire started. His second grade son was at the Wednesday mass and fled to the basement.
- Shea McAdaragh:He didn’t have to go through it alone. Yes, I’m glad I was there for that. This didn’t happen at the school. This happened at the church. There were no systems of protection at the church, no drills. No one — no one had conceived of somebody shooting at church full of children.It wasn’t a level of evil that the — sorry. It wasn’t a level of evil that we had conceived of yet. I guess now society is here. We have to deal with it.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Last night was full of challenges for parents across this community.
- Caitlin Bjorge, Minneapolis Resident:I put them to bed last night, and they said: “Mom, where’s the bad guy? And I don’t like bad guys, I only like the police.” And it’s just devastating.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Caitlin Nolan (ph) Bjorge and her husband, Andrew, live across the street from the Annunciation Church. She heard the gunshots shortly after 8:00 yesterday morning.
- Caitlin Bjorge:I look outside, thinking that there’s like some kind of drilling going on. I didn’t know what it was. And I opened my front door and this man with his ginormous rifle is shooting up the side of the church. And I just immediately called 911, and then I called my neighbors, who have kids that go there.And they didn’t answer. And I’m — I felt this urge to get into that church, but I had to get my own kids. And I grabbed them, scooped them up in the car and drove away.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:The 6-year-old twins start school next week.
- Caitlin Bjorge:I don’t want to drop them off, but I want them to have a normal life and know that schools are safe. But how do we tell them that schools are safe when this happens all the time?
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:Governor Tim Walz has deployed state law enforcement to support local police in patrols of the city. And survivors urge their community to band together.
- Shea McAdaragh:We need to lean into the thing that we loved about this place, which is the community.
- Fred de Sam Lazaro:There are no silver linings in this story, but Police Chief O’Hara disclosed today that the doors of the church were locked from inside once the mass commenced. And that, he said, undoubtedly saved lives.I spoke earlier today with the principal of the school. He was not ready to go on camera, still processing a lot of grief, along with parents and students in this community. They don’t know yet when school will resume — Geoff.
- Geoff Bennett:Our thanks to Fred de Sam Lazaro reporting tonight for Minneapolis.
Minnesota Grieves
A report from minneapolis on the aftermath of the annunciation church school shooting
