JD Vance to visit Minneapolis Wednesday to pay tribute to victims of Annunciation church shooting

Vice President JD Vance will visit the city of Minneapolis on Wednesday to pay tribute to the victims of the shooting that took place last week at Annunciation Catholic Church, in an event that shocked both the state of Minnesota and the country. In a statement, the White House reported that the vice president would attend the event along with his wife Usha Vance, and detailed that the couple will not only pay their respects to the victims, but will also "hold a series of private meetings to convey condolences to the families of those affected by the tragedy."

The Vance family's visit will take place seven days after a 23-year-old attacker named Robin Westman opened fire inside the church located in south Minneapolis during a school mass. In the shooting, the transgender youth killed a 10-year-old boy named Harper Moyski and an 8-year-old boy named Fletcher Merkel. Similarly, lauthorities reported that Westman wounded 21 other people, most of these being children, adding that the shooter died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

President Donald Trump contacted Minnesota Democratic Governor Tim Walz shortly after the shooting to express his condolences, and even ordered American flags to be flown at half-staff on any and all public buildings and grounds, as well as military installations across the country.

For his part, Vance wrote through his X account that the White House was monitoring the situation in Minneapolis and asked everyone to pray for those who were killed and wounded during the church shooting. "Join all of us in praying for the victims!" the vice president posted.