Mother of Minneapolis shooter hires attorney: Reports

(NewsNation) — The Minneapolis school shooter’s mother has hired an attorney, according to reports.

While police initially said they’d been “unsuccessful” in contacting her, Minneapolis Police said Friday there has “now been conversation” with the shooter’s mother. She used to work at Annunciation Catholic School, but now lives in Florida.

It comes as a memorial outside Annunciation Catholic School grew Friday as the world learned the identities of the two children killed and new details about the shooter.

The shooting, which occurred during the school’s celebration of Mass, left 18 others injured, including 15 children.

Another child leaves hospital

A child has been discharged from a Minneapolis hospital that was treating victims from Wednesday’s shooting, and six victims are still being cared for, according to a statement from the hospital.

Hennepin Healthcare said Friday it is still treating five children and one adult. One child is in critical condition, the adult is in serious condition, and the other four children are in satisfactory condition, the message said.

On Thursday evening, Hennepin said it was caring for six children and one adult.

Families remember children killed in Minneapolis shooting

Those killed included 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel and 10-year-old Harper Moyski, their families confirmed Thursday.

“Yesterday, a coward decided to take our 8-year-old son Fletcher away from us,” father Jesse Merkel told local media. “I hope that in time, our family can find healing. I pray that the other victim’s family can find some semblance of the same.”

“Please remember Fletcher for the person he was, and not the act that ended his life,” he added.

Moyski’s family remembered her as a “bright, joyful, and deeply loved 10-year-old.”

“Our hearts are broken not only as parents, but also for Harper’s sister, who adored her big sister and is grieving an unimaginable loss,” said Michael Moyski and Jackie Flavin. “As a family, we are shattered, and words cannot capture the depth of our pain.”

Stories from the injured have also emerged. One 13-year-old, shot in the stomach, asked doctors to pray with him before heading into surgery.

Another 12-year-old student underwent emergency surgery. Her mother was a nurse at a local hospital — and she went into work not knowing her daughter was one of the victims.

Minneapolis shooter had ‘deranged fascination’ with school shootings

Authorities said the suspected shooter, 23-year-old Robin Westman, died on the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot.

While no motive has been determined for Westman’s actions, police said their investigation has shown the shooter “expressed hate towards almost every group imaginable.”

Westman had a “deranged fascination” with previous school shooters and was obsessed with hurting children, according to Minneapolis police Chief Brian O’Hara.

The shooter also wrote in Russian about being frustrated with identifying as a trans woman, going so far as to write, “I wish I never brainwashed myself.” The shooter also wrote “I will probably chop [my hair] off the day of the attack.”

“The shooter saw the attack as a way to target our most vulnerable among us, while they were at their most vulnerable — at school, at church,” said Joseph Thompson, acting U.S. attorney general for Minnesota, on Thursday.