Vice President Vance visits Minneapolis to meet families of Catholic school shooting victims

Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance visited Minneapolis on Wednesday to meet privately with families and victims of a shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church that killed two schoolchildren and injured 21 people.

Vance, who is Catholic, and his wife spoke with parents, children wounded by gunfire and church leaders, and left two bouquets tied with blue ribbon at the church entrance, the White House said. "I have never had a day that will stay with me like this day did," Vance said after the meetings, adding that grieving parents had opened their lives and hearts to him.

The shooting occurred during the first Mass of the school year for students of the nearby Annunciation Catholic School. Authorities say 23-year-old Robin Westman barricaded a door to the church, opened fire through a stained-glass window and then killed himself. Two students were killed: Fletcher Merkel, 8, and Harper Moyski, 10. Twenty-one other people were wounded.

Security was heavy outside the church ahead of the visit. The White House said the Vances would hold a series of private meetings to convey condolences to those affected but released few other details.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis told Minnesota Public Radio that he had not been invited to some of the scheduled meetings but welcomed the vice president's visit, saying he had met with the families himself. Church and school leaders had been tending to families and parishioners in the days after the attack.

Local and federal authorities have been investigating the circumstances of the shooting. Police accounts describe Westman entering the church and opening fire during the service; officers later found him dead inside the building. Officials have said the incident unfolded rapidly and that the motive remained under review as investigators interviewed witnesses and gathered evidence.

Vance's visit marks a high-profile appearance by the Biden administration's No. 2 official at a mass shooting that has drawn attention to school and church safety amid ongoing national debates over gun violence and security policy. The vice president's public comments were limited to his remarks to grieving family members and brief comments to reporters at the scene.

The Archdiocese and school leaders have said counseling and support services remain in place for students, families and staff. Memorials and vigils have continued in the days following the attack as the community copes with the losses and injuries suffered during the service.