Minnesota Church Killer's Mother Takes Unusual Action After Shooting Tragedy

"What happens next will depend on the investigation, and on whether Mary Grace Westman eventually chooses to speak."

The nation is still reeling after the horrific attack on Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis, where 23-year-old Robin Westman opened fire during morning Mass, killing two young children and wounding seventeen more parishioners — many of them school-aged children.

But amid the heartbreak and search for answers, one figure has quietly stepped out of public view and directly into legal protection: the shooter’s mother, Mary Grace Westman. Her actions in the aftermath of the tragedy have many people asking some very disturbing questions.

According to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, investigators have made contact with most of Robin Westman’s family, including the shooter’s father, and conducted dozens of interviews with friends and associates.

But Mary Grace Westman — who now resides in Florida — has not spoken with authorities. Instead, she has hired criminal defense attorney Ryan Garry, known for his work with high-profile clients including activists and civil rights groups.

It is a bit of a mystery why Westman would retain legal council that has worked with the likes of BLM protesters in the George Floyd case and former NFL quarterback and “kneeling” activist Colin Kaepernick.

The unusual move echoes that of the controversial stabbing of Austin Metcalf in Frisco, Texas. The defendant, Karmelo Anthony, retained the services of notorious activist Dominique Alexander, who grandstanded about the racially sensitive case at a time when the local community was reeling.

Garry has so far declined comment, and his client remains unreachable to investigators.

The decision to retain a defense lawyer and avoid cooperating with police has raised eyebrows, particularly given that Mary Grace is not under investigation and has not been accused of any crime.

Still, in an era of rising public scrutiny, potential civil liability, and volatile media attention, the move is not entirely without precedent — but it is certainly unusual.

Mary Grace Westman, notably, had applied for a name change when Robert (Robin) Westman was 17, giving the reason that he “identifies as a female and wants her name to reflect that identification.”

Although an NBC article posted a correction for allegedly “misgendering” Westman, this article will maintain that Robert/Robin was a biological male that subjectively believed that he was a female.

For the families mourning the loss of eight-year-old Fletcher Merkel and ten-year-old Harper Moyski, the decision adds another layer of frustration to an already unbearable tragedy.

With the shooter deceased and no official motive publicly released, any insight from family members — especially her mother, who shared a home with Robin during much of his upbringing — could be critical to understanding what led to the attack.

But while authorities claim that there is no known motive, it is clear from the record that the killer left behind why he committed the heinous act.

• Westman had an identity crisis and said he was “tired” of being trans

• The killer made frequent anti-religious writings in his “manifesto”

• He had anti-Trump political leanings that suggest media radicalization

• He wrote that he wanted to see the Christian children suffer

Authorities say Westman opened fire just before 8:30 a.m. local time, using three different firearms — a rifle, a shotgun, and a handgun — from outside the church, where she fired through the stained-glass windows.

Video surveillance reportedly shows Westman attempting to barricade doors from the outside, potentially preventing parishioners from escaping. The attack ended in suicide, with Westman taking his own life at the scene. Police later recovered 116 rifle casings and multiple shell casings from the other weapons.

By some accounts, the tragedy could have been worse. Church doors had reportedly been locked once Mass began, preventing the shooter from entering. Still, the damage was immense: fifteen children were wounded, as well as three elderly parishioners. Several victims remain in critical condition.

Mary Grace Westman’s lack of communication has left a glaring silence in the wake of the shooting — one that raises questions, even if it does not yet raise legal implications. Historically, families of mass shooters have been key to piecing together motive, warning signs, and the psychological state of the perpetrator. Sometimes, that cooperation has also helped law enforcement better understand how tragedies like this can be prevented in the future.

The legal instincts at play in this case, however, suggest another possibility: that Mary Grace Westman may be seeking protection not just from police scrutiny, but from the inevitable media storm and potential civil exposure that often follow mass shootings.

Experts note that while hiring a criminal defense lawyer doesn’t mean someone is guilty or complicit, it is a clear signal that the person anticipates needing protection — and possibly silence — during what will likely be a long investigation.

This strategy is not without precedent. The parents of Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley were eventually charged with involuntary manslaughter after prosecutors argued they ignored clear warning signs and failed to secure the weapon used in the attack. They were sentenced to lengthy prison terms.

In that case, the legal system took the extraordinary step of holding the parents accountable — not for pulling the trigger, but for failing to prevent what appeared preventable.

So far, there is no indication that police are considering charges against Mary Grace Westman or any member of the family. But with new laws in Minnesota — including a 2024 red flag law allowing courts to remove firearms from potentially dangerous individuals and a 2023 universal background check requirement — there is potential scrutiny over whether family members missed or ignored signs that Robin Westman was spiraling.

In 2018, authorities responded to a mental health call involving a juvenile at her residence, and another report in 2016 referenced a “criminal offense,” though both cases were heavily redacted. While police say Westman had no criminal record outside of a traffic ticket and was able to legally obtain firearms, writings tell a different story.

Investigators say they found journals, videos, and social media posts in which Westman fantasized about school shootings, praised the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, and left behind a disturbing manifesto filled with antisemitic, homophobic, and anti-Catholic slurs. One video even included a call for the death of former President Donald Trump. Authorities described the attack as an act of domestic terrorism motivated by hate.

Despite all this, Minneapolis Police Chief O’Hara said the investigation has not turned up definitive evidence that warning signs were missed — at least not by systems currently in place. That doesn’t mean there weren’t personal red flags seen by family, friends, or others close to Westman. In fact, the shooter had been “dropping warning signs” and asking for help for years.

The decision by Mary Grace Westman to remain silent — through her attorney — could stem from multiple pressures. First, the public is increasingly unforgiving toward families of mass shooters, especially in cases where neglect, access to weapons, or failure to intervene may be inferred. Second, legal experts say the potential for civil lawsuits from victims' families is real — even if there's no criminal wrongdoing. And third, there’s the emotional toll: for a mother who just lost a child in an act of self-inflicted infamy, speaking publicly may simply be too much.

Still, silence is not neutral. As the public grieves and families bury their children, the refusal to speak — even through police channels — can look like evasion, or worse, guilt. Understandably or not, the mother of a mass shooter enters the public spotlight not by choice, but by consequence. Whether she has answers or not, her silence now becomes part of the narrative.

It’s possible Mary Grace Westman had no idea what her biological son was planning. It’s possible she saw her child as struggling but never imagined he was capable of mass violence. It’s also possible, as some former acquaintances suggest, that the signs were always there — brushed off as dark humor, adolescent angst, or the fallout of family and identity struggles. At least one former classmate described Westman as a loner with a morbid personality and a fascination with violence, though nothing outwardly criminal.

What happens next will depend on the investigation, and on whether Mary Grace Westman eventually chooses to speak. But in a community rocked by unimaginable pain, her silence speaks volumes.