What began as an ordinary Tuesday afternoon. Sept. 16, 2025, outside Lincoln Middle School turned into a nightmare when Assistant Principal Nerissa Lee, 46, and her 76-year-old mother were brutally gunned down by Lee’s husband, Steven T. Lee, 54, who then turned the rifle on himself.
The horror unfolded just after 4 p.m. when students were still inside the building. Witnesses described the terrifying sound of rapid gunfire—more than a dozen shots, some estimating nearly 20—as Steven Lee opened fire into his wife’s car before aiming at police officers. Officers, who had been nearby, did not return fire.
Inside the school, panic spread quickly. Teachers rushed to lock doors, while students huddled under desks in fear as the building went into lockdown mode.
Seventh-grader Christopher Cruz-Villogoez recalled feeling “mixed emotions … sad … a little bit of anger,” telling CBS Chicago that he begged his mother not to come near the school because he feared she might get caught in the chaos.
A Domestic Violence Boiling Point
Authorities confirmed the shooting was a domestic violence incident that had escalated fatally. Nerissa’s sister, Shana Everage, told NBC Chicago the tragedy had been brewing for months:
“It had started ever since … the tail end of June and basically the boiling point would have been yesterday. It’s a horrible thing, you know. I have a lot of emotions. I don’t quite know what to feel.”
A Beloved Educator Remembered
The loss is profound for students and staff. Assistant Principal Lee had become a cornerstone at Lincoln Middle School, known for her dedication, humor, and love of her students.
“She was always, always about her work. She really loved her school, really loved her kids,” one student said at a memorial service. Another remembered how she could laugh so hard “you didn’t even need to understand the joke to laugh along.”
Aftermath and Community Grief
The school closed the following day to allow the community to grieve and prepare resources. When classes resumed, grief counselors were stationed throughout the building to help students and staff cope with the shock.
The Berwyn Police Department released a statement saying, “The impact of this loss is felt deeply not only within the school community but throughout Berwyn.”
The tragedy has reignited urgent conversations around domestic violence, gun access, and school safety, leaving a community in mourning and a school struggling to heal from an act of violence that struck at its very heart.
