Boy receiving Citizen Honor Award for shielding classmate during school shooting in Minneapolis
Victor Greenawalt, a Citizen Honor Award recipient, poses with his mother in Washington, D.C., March 24, 2026. (Congressional Medal of Honor Society)
(MINNEAPOLIS) — A 11-year-old boy from Minneapolis will be recognized with a Citizen Honor Award in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday for helping save a classmate’s life during a mass shooting at their school.
Victor Greenawalt is among this year’s six honorees — five individuals and one nonprofit — for showing “extraordinary bravery far beyond his years,” the Congressional Medal of Honor Society said in a statement. “Instinctively, Victor protected a classmate with his own body, directly saving their life.”
Victor was injured when he used his body to shield his friend from the gunfire at Annunciation Catholic School, according to MPR News.
“My friend Victor, like, saved me though. He laid on top of me, but he got hit,” the friend, Weston Halsne, told Minneapolis station KARE last year. “He was really brave.”
An 8-year-old and 10-year-old sitting in pews were killed and many others were injured when the shooter opened fire through the windows of the school’s church on Aug. 27, 2025. The shooter died at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.
Victor is receiving the young hero award, which honors Americans 17 years old or younger “for their courage in a dire situation,” the Congressional Medal of Honor Society said.
Law enforcement respond near Temple Israel following reports of an active shooter on March 12, 2026 in West Bloomfield, Michigan. Police continue to investigate as emergency personnel remained on the scene. (Photo by Emily Elconin/Getty Images)
(WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich.) — Dearborn Heights Mayor Mo Baydoun said that 41-year-old Ayman Mohamad Ghazali — the suspect involved in the shooting and vehicle-ramming attack at a Detroit-area synagogue on Thursday — had “lost several members of his own family … in an Israeli attack on their home in Lebanon.”
Strongly condemning the attack, Baydoun said “everyone deserves to worship in peace and we must unequivocally condemn any attack on a house of worship or the people within it.”
“We learned that the individual responsible for the incident that took place at Temple Israel Synagogue in West Bloomfield was a resident of Dearborn Heights,” Baydoun continued. “He died at the scene. Earlier this month, he lost several members of his own family, including his niece and nephew, in an Israeli attack on their home in Lebanon.”
Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin also vehemently condemned the attack, saying she is “so sick” of these incidents happening both within her community and across the country.
“Everyone deserves the right to worship in peace. Everyone. An act of antisemitism, an act of violence, of hate, should be treated to the fullest extent of the law,” Slotkin told ABC News on Thursday. “And I’m so sick of another one of these incidents all the time in my community, across the country. And I just — I think we need to acknowledge that we have a problem, and I’m just sick about it.”
Ghazali, who was armed with a rifle, died after a shootout with security at the Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan, a senior federal law enforcement official briefed on the investigation said earlier.
Nobody inside the synagogue was hurt, and the synagogue noted that all 140 students as well as staff, teachers and “heroic security personnel” were accounted for, according to Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard.
“This tragedy comes at a time when communities everywhere are confronting rising hate and senseless violence. No matter where violence occurs, whether in West Bloomfield or anywhere around in the world, harm against innocent people is something we must all stand firmly against,” Baydoun said. “The tensions we see across the world too often find their way into our own neighborhoods, reminding us how deeply connected our shared safety is.”
The sheriff said one synagogue security guard was hit by the suspect’s truck in the incident and was “knocked unconscious” but was expected to be okay.
There were no other injuries in the attack, though 30 law enforcement officers were transported to the hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation, according to Bouchard.
“I want our community to know that we are working closely with our police department and regional partners to protect the safety of every house of worship in our city,” said Baydoun. “I urge residents to stay aware and vigilant, especially as we gather during these sacred final days of Ramadan. Let’s continue to care for one another and pay attention to anything that feels out of place … “My heart is with everyone affected by these deeply painful events.”
Police officers stand along a security cordon at a crime scene at Bondi Beach following a terrorist attack. (Claudio Galdames Alarcon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Security is being ramped up for the first night of Hanukkah in New York City and Los Angeles as law enforcement agencies went on high alert following a mass shooting at a Jewish celebration in Bondi Beach, Australia, Sunday that killed 11 people in what New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said was an attack “designed to target Sydney’s Jewish community on the first day of Hanukkah.”
The New York City and Suffolk County, New York, police departments announced on Sunday that extra officers are being deployed to local Hanukkah events.
New York law enforcement officials said that while there have been no credible threats locally connected to the mass shooting in Australia, extra officers will be patrolling public Hanukkah celebrations “out of an abundance of caution.”
Hanukkah, which lasts eight days and is one of the most widely observed Jewish holidays, begins at sundown on Sunday.
“We are closely monitoring the horrific attack at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, during a Hanukkah celebration,” the NYPD said in a statement. “We are in touch with our Australian partners, and at this time, we see no nexus to NYC.”
On Long Island, New York, the Suffolk County Police Department said it also plans to beef up security at public Hanukkah events, and noted it is monitoring developments following the mass shooting in Australia.
“While there are no threats locally, the department is in constant contact with its law enforcement partners,” Suffolk County Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina and County Executive Ed Romaine said in a joint statement posted online. “As always, the department has stepped up patrols around religious institutions during the holidays and has now enhanced those efforts. We are reaching out to Jewish community leaders and ask anyone who sees suspicious activity to call 911.”
In California, the Los Angeles Police Department said it is providing extra patrols at Jewish facilities, schools, synagogues, and at Hanukkah events in the city.
“While there is no known threat to Los Angeles at this time, the LAPD remains vigilant and committed to protecting our diverse communities. As part of this commitment, the LAPD will provide extra patrols at Jewish facilities, schools, synagogues, and at Hanukkah events throughout the city,” the LAPD statement said, in part.
“We stand in solidarity with the Jewish Community in Australia and here in Los Angeles, and our thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all those impacted by this senseless act of violence,” the statement also said.
Beverly Hills also will assign extra patrols to all religious institutions and high-profile areas of the city, Beverly Hills Police Department Chief Mark Stainbrook told ABC News, adding that there is no known threat to the city. He further said that the city will focus surveillance cameras and drones on those high-profile areas of the city and any Hanukkah events. They will also have extra private security at events which are often used in Beverly Hills to augment sworn police, according to Stainbrook.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said they likewise will increase their vigilance.
“We are actively assessing any potential threats to Los Angeles County and have increased patrol checks at critical facilities. All patrol personnel will be briefed to ensure heightened situational awareness and continued vigilance,” an LASD spokesperson told ABC News, in part. “In addition, we will be reaching out to our faith-based partners and community leaders to encourage the public to promptly report any suspicious activity.”
Two gunmen opened fire at Australia’s Bondi Beach Sunday in an attack that targeted a Jewish event, New South Wales Premier Chris Minns said, adding that police had designated the shooting as a “terrorism event.”
“This attack was designed to target Sydney’s Jewish community on the first day of Hanukkah,” Minns said at a press conference on Sunday.
Spencer and Monique Tepe are seen in this undated photo. (Courtesy Rob Misleh)
(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — A man is due in court on Monday for allegedly gunning down his ex-wife and her husband in their Ohio home and leaving their two young children alive, authorities said.
Dentist Spencer Tepe and his wife, Monique Tepe, were found shot to death on Dec. 30, according to Columbus police, and the mysterious case quickly garnered national intrigue.
McKee, a Chicago resident, was taken into custody in Illinois and is charged with premeditated aggravated murder, according to records.
McKee and Monique Tepe were married in 2015 and divorced in 2017, according to divorce records obtained by ABC Columbus affiliate WSYX. They did not have any children together, according to the records.
Spencer and Monique Tepe married in December 2020, according to their obituary.
The arrest came one day before the scheduled celebration of life service for the couple.
“Today’s arrest represents an important step toward justice for Monique and Spencer,” the family said in a statement. “Nothing can undo the devastating loss of two lives taken far too soon, but we are grateful to the City of Columbus Police Department, its investigators, and assisting law enforcement community. … As the case proceeds, we trust the justice system to hold the person responsible fully accountable.”
“Monique and Spencer remain at the center of our hearts, and we carry forward their love as we surround and protect the two children they leave behind,” the family said. “We will continue to honor their lives and the light they brought into this world.”
ABC News’ Matt Foster, Victoria Arancio and Nadine El-Bawab contributed to this report.
