Transgender mass shooters spark debate over intervention systems

While Americans grapple with another Mass shooting A transgender person commits a crime, a broader national debate is unfolding about whether warning signs are being ignored and whether institutions charged with preventing violence are falling short.

A retired FBI agent says years of behavioral threat assessments reveal a troubling constant: In case after case, there was a point at which someone could have intervened — but the system failed to act.

The shooting in Rhode Island also sparked a new debate about violent crime and gender identity, with many prominent commentators questioning whether this pattern is beginning to emerge.

“Why are there so many violent shooters, and is #BigPharma fueling the violence?” Fox News host Rachel Campos Duffy asked whether federal health officials are adequately studying mental health treatment and the use of medication and hormone therapy in cases involving transgender suspects.

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Campos-Duffy said she pressed Callie Means and the Department of Health and Human Services on what research, if any, was being conducted and what policies could be implemented to “find answers and end the carnage.”

Likewise, radio host Clay Travis cited several recent attacks and said that “the rate of trans violence is off the charts.”

Shootings frequently cited in discussion include:

2018 – Aberdeen, Maryland
Senochia Mosley, a transgender man, killed three of his co-workers at a Rite Aid distribution center before dying by suicide. The authorities said.

2019 – Highlands Ranch, Colorado (STEM School Highlands Ranch)
Alec McKinney, a transgender student, and Devon Erickson carried out a school shooting that left a student dead and eight others injured. McKinney told investigators that bullying about gender identity was a factor.

2022 – Colorado Springs, Colorado
Anderson Lee Aldrich, who authorities said was non-binary, opened fire inside an LGBTQ+ nightclub, killing five people.

2023 – Nashville, Tennessee (Covenant School)
Audrey Hill, identified by police as a transgender man, killed six people, including three children.

Covenant School shooter Audrey Hill walks past the Children’s Ministry office. (1:57) (Twitter @MNNPDNashville)

2025 – Minneapolis, Minnesota (Annunciation Catholic Church)
Robin Westman, who authorities said was transgender, killed two children during a church service before dying by suicide.

2026 – Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia
Jesse Van Rotselaer, Who police say was transgender, killed eight people, including five students and one teacher, before dying from his gunshot wounds.

2026 – Pawtucket, Rhode Island
robert dorgan, Who police say is transgender, also known as Roberta Esposito, killed three people, including members of his family, before killing himself.

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Screenshots from a YouTube video posted by Robin M. Westman, 23, show the suspect police identified as the gunman in the Aug. 27, 2025, Minneapolis church school shooting. (Obtained by Fox News)

Advocacy groups strongly reject claims that transgender identity is linked to mass violence.

“There is no evidence of an increase in violence committed by people from the LGBTQ community,” GLAAD says, citing Gun Violence Archive data that shows that of 5,748 mass shootings recorded between January 1, 2013, and September 15, 2025, five of the confirmed perpetrators were transgender — accounting for less than 0.1% of the incidents.

“Accusing people from a small and vulnerable community of committing mass shootings is an attempt to further dehumanize and demonize people and promote fear about trans and non-binary people,” the organization says.

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Retired FBI agent Jason Buck He cautioned against framing the recent violence through a political or demographic lens, urging instead a focus on systemic breakdowns in the intervention.

“Whatever your views on gender identity, and Americans have strong and honest views on all aspects of this matter, I think most people would agree that every human being in crisis deserves to intervene before tragedy strikes,” Buck said.

From a law enforcement perspective, he emphasized that identity alone is not what threat assessment teams evaluate.

“Law enforcement and behavioral threat assessments don’t look at groups by identity alone. They never have. What they look at is individual behavior, individual history, individual warning signs,” he explained.

Rhode Island Ice Rink shooting victims confirmed that the shooter’s daughter was claiming a “revenge” against the family

Families reunite outside police barricades after a shooting at the Church of the Annunciation, which also houses an elementary school, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States, August 27, 2025. (Reuters/Ben Brewer)

According to Buck, investigators often uncover missed opportunities for intervention: warning comments that went unreported, mental health calls that weren’t followed up, family members unsure of where to turn, or school flags stuck within bureaucratic systems.

“This is a pattern that deserves study,” he said. “It’s not who these individuals are demographically, but what failed them and what failed the public before they took up arms.”

Buck pointed to what he described as a recurring “crossing point” — a moment when authorities, schools or families could have acted but didn’t, whether it was because of underfunded threat assessment teams, unused red flag laws or crisis hotlines that failed to connect callers to help.

“The solution lies in fixing the pipeline that continues to break down, which protects everyone,” he said.

Rhode Island ice rink suspect’s gender identity was source of past family conflict: documents

Forensic psychiatrist Dr. Carol Lieberman said there is often something that can be identified Psychological patterns that precede acts of mass violence.

“A shooter’s path to mass violence begins with a dysfunctional childhood, where he was abused or neglected,” Lieberman said. She added that much later Become isolated or bulliedOr become immersed in violent media, abuse substances, or develop the belief that “nobody likes them,” which can lead to deepening resentment and hatred toward others.

In her view, the turning point often comes after a destabilizing life event.

“After they dive deeper into their own world, a traumatic event occurs that blows them away — such as rejection, a breakup, the death of someone they care about, getting fired from a job, or any other surprising event that rocks their world and makes them think it’s time to punish others,” she said.

Lieberman echoed concerns about missed opportunities for intervention, saying that warning signs often appear long before violence occurs.

“The first potential intervention is from parents who notice that their child is displaying unusual behavior, such as retracting into a shell with declining grades,” she said. “Unfortunately, too often, even when someone is brought to a mental health professional, the depth of their mental problems is ignored and they are not adequately treated.”

Stronger early intervention systems in schools, including increased access to school psychologists and ongoing crisis counseling, can help identify at-risk students before they escalate, she said.

“There should be intervention systems in schools to identify children with problems early,” Lieberman said.

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When asked about the public debate about the gender identity of suspects in some recent cases, Lieberman said she believes identity-related distress may play a role for some individuals.

“There is an increasing tendency for some mass shooters to be transgender,” she said, attributing that in some cases to what she described as self-loathing and intense anger — a view disputed by LGBT advocacy groups who cite national data showing that transgender perpetrators represent a small portion of total mass shootings.

George Brauchler, the U.S. Attorney for Colorado’s 23rd Judicial District who prosecuted the 2019 STEM school Highlands Ranch case, said the focus should remain on prevention — not politics.

He added: “We must avoid sensationalism on each side of this issue and engage in a sober effort to assess whether there are any common threads that precede crimes that result in mass casualties.” “The victims who have not yet occurred deserve a sincere effort to reduce their numbers, independent of political posturing.”

Stephenie Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and immigrant crimes. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.