Did Psychiatric Drugs Play a Role in the Minneapolis Catholic School Shooting? RFK Jr. Launches Investigation

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced an investigation Thursday into whether drugs taken by transgender shooter Robin Westman played a role in the lethal shooting at the Minneapolis Catholic school.

In an appearance on Fox & Friends, Kennedy said that federal health officials are looking into whether psychiatric drugs or medicines frequently prescribed to people undergoing a gender transition played “a role” in the violence.

He focused on Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), which are often used for depression, and noted that some of these have warnings for suicide and violence.

“Some of the SSRI drugs and some of the other psychiatric drugs encourage violence,” Kennedy added. “They carry warnings about suicidal and homicidal thoughts. We can’t not consider these as a contributing factor, and that’s why we’re doing these studies.”

The FBI is investigating the attack as a hate crime and domestic terrorism. According to FBI Director Kash Patel, investigators are reviewing personal writings by Westman that show he was angry at religion, severely depressed, and had a desire to commit violence.

Details of the Attack

Westman, 23, an alumnus of Annunciation Catholic School, used a rifle to open fire at the school’s first Mass of the year on Wednesday. As nearly 200 children and parishioners prayed, the gunman blocked doors and shot through stained glass windows.

Two children, ages 8 and 10, were killed as they sat on the pews. Seventeen others were injured; among them, 14 are children aged between 6 and 15 years. Two individuals are in critical condition but are expected to survive, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara confirmed. Westmen died by suicide in the parking lot of the church.

Suicide Note and Online Manifesto

In a four-page suicide letter recovered by investigators, Westman apologized to family members but also detailed a long-simmering rage and desire for mass violence. Some parts of the note were in Cyrillic, and other personal grievances, along with references to depression, officials have said.
Westman had also uploaded unsettling videos online in the days leading up to the attack, authorities found. In one video, Westman can be seen laughing as he pulls back blankets to reveal guns and ammunition. The videos included threats, anti-religious comments, and comments that praised earlier mass shooters.

Similarities to the Nashville Shooting

Police reported that the attack appeared to resemble the 2023 Nashville school shooting, perpetrated by another former transgender student, Audrey Hale. The attacks both took months of planning and extensive writing and involved no criminal history.

Kennedy said his department will investigate every potential factor in the cause of death, especially psychiatric drugs, and he took issue with previous restrictions that have hindered such studies in the past because of confidentiality rules.

“There was never a time before where people would walk into churches or walk into classrooms and start shooting,” Kennedy said. “This is not happening in other countries the way it is happening here, and we need to look at all potential causes.”