Fundraiser for journalists at Maryland newspaper after shooting raises $30K

An online fundraiser has been launched directed at helping journalists at the Maryland newspaper rocked by a deadly shooting on Thursday.

The GoFundMe campaign meant to benefit the Capital Gazette newsroom in Annapolis, Md., raised more than $30,000 hours after its launch following the shooting that left at least five people dead.

Madi Alexander, a reporter at Bloomberg Government who set up the fundraising page, said she was in contact with members of the Capital Gazette following the shooting and wanted to help journalists in the newsroom.

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“Our hearts break for our colleagues in Annapolis and we want to do whatever we possibly can to help them pay for medical bills, funeral costs, newsroom repairs, and any other unforeseen expenses that might arise as a result of this terrible shooting,” she wrote on the fundraising page.

Alexander told The Baltimore Sun that she couldn’t “stop thinking about how this could be any one of us.” The newspaper notes that she started the fundraiser after talking with someone who worked at the Capital Gazette.  

The fundraiser set an initial goal of raising $30,000 for those affected by Thursday’s shooting before raising it to $50,000 after meeting the initial goal.

Acting Anne Arundel County police chief William Krampf said during a press conference that there were five confirmed fatalities, with several others injured.

The suspect has been identified in media reports as 38-year-old Jarrod Ramos. It was reported that Ramos sued the Capital Gazette in 2012 for defamation, but the case was thrown out by a judge.