Current:Home > InvestAn Amish woman dies 18 years after being severely injured in a deadly schoolhouse shooting -InfinityFinance
An Amish woman dies 18 years after being severely injured in a deadly schoolhouse shooting
View
Date:2025-04-12 09:28:35
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A woman who was severely injured when a gunman killed five girls and wounded her and four other girls during an attack on their one-room Amish schoolhouse in Pennsylvania has died 18 years later, a funeral director said Thursday.
Rosanna S. King, 23, died at her home on Tuesday and a funeral is planned at her home in the farming community of Paradise on Friday, according to an obituary from Furman Home for Funerals in Leola. Funeral director Philip Furman confirmed Thursday she was among those shot at the West Nickel Mines Amish School in October 2006.
Charles Carl Roberts IV, a 32-year-old milk truck driver, barricaded himself inside the schoolhouse and let boys and several adults go as he tied up 10 girls and shot them before taking his own life as police closed in.
Rosanna King, who belonged to an Old Order Amish Church community, was 6 years old at the time and had been considered the most severely injured survivor. She had been shot in the head and the attack left her unable to talk and needing a tube to be fed. She was dependent on others for personal care and mobility.
A year afterward, her family said in a statement she was able to recognize family members, smiled a lot and had limited physical movement. They said in 2007 that “the hardest part has been to see her suffer.”
She will be buried in the Bart Cemetery.
Roberts’ mother, Terri Roberts, regularly visited Rosanna King, inspired by the forgiveness the Amish community expressed to her and her family after the attack.
In a 2013 interview, Rosanna’s father, Christ King, said there were times when he asked himself if he had really forgiven the shooter.
“We have a lot of work to do to live up to what we are bragged up to be,” Christ King said back then. “Everyone was talking about this forgiveness thing, and I felt that was putting a lot of weight on our shoulders to live up to that.”
Roberts indicated in suicide notes left behind and during a last call with his wife that he had been tormented by unsubstantiated memories of having molested a couple of young relatives and by the death of his newborn daughter in 1997.
The schoolhouse was torn down 10 days after the killings and a new one was constructed nearby.
The Amish prioritize their deep Christian faith and family life, eschewing many modern conveniences. They wear traditional clothing and use horses and buggies for much of their transportation. They often speak a German dialect known as Pennsylvania Dutch.
Rosanna King died the same week a 14-year-old Georgia student was charged with using an assault-style rifle to kill two students and two teachers at his high school about an hour outside of Atlanta. There have been more than 600 mass killings in the United States since 2006.
veryGood! (25)
Related
- Juan Soto to be introduced by Mets at Citi Field after striking record $765 million, 15
- Virginia officials defend response to snowy gridlock on I-95
- Mourners bury Nahel, teen shot by police, as Macron cancels first state visit to Germany in 23 years due to riots
- India pledges net-zero emissions by 2070 — but also wants to expand coal mining
- Skins Game to make return to Thanksgiving week with a modern look
- Glasgow climate pledges are 'lip service' without far more aggressive plans
- Kathy Griffin Spends Easter Holiday Getting MRI One Year After Cancer Battle
- Young Activists At U.N. Climate Summit: 'We Are Not Drowning. We Are Fighting'
- Why Sean "Diddy" Combs Is Being Given a Laptop in Jail Amid Witness Intimidation Fears
- How Below Deck Sailing Yacht's Gary Really Feels About Daisy and Colin's Romance
Ranking
- Don't let hackers fool you with a 'scam
- Young Activists At U.N. Climate Summit: 'We Are Not Drowning. We Are Fighting'
- Kentucky storm brings flooding, damage and power outages
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get This $250 Crossbody Bag for Just $59 and a Free Wallet
- Opinion: Gianni Infantino, FIFA sell souls and 2034 World Cup for Saudi Arabia's billions
- Indigenous activists are united in a cause and are making themselves heard at COP26
- COP26 sees pledges to transition to electric vehicles, but key countries are mum
- In Beijing, Yellen raises concerns over Chinese actions against U.S. businesses
Recommendation
Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
Kelly Osbourne Shares Rare Glimpse of Her Baby Boy Sidney in New Photos
Jonas Brothers Twin With Molly Shannon's Sally O'Malley on SNL
Virginia officials defend response to snowy gridlock on I-95
Trump wants to turn the clock on daylight saving time
A climate change disaster led this shy 24-year-old from Uganda into activism
The U.N. says climate impacts are getting worse faster than the world is adapting
The Arctic has a new record high temperature, according to the U.N.