Nengmy Vang

Nengmy Vang was a Hmong American man who lived in Marathon County, Wisconsin. Public records and interviews indicate he was married to Naly Vang for approximately 25 years. The couple met when Naly was 16 years old and married shortly thereafter. Over the course of the marriage, they had seven children together.

According to interviews and court records, the marriage was marked by prolonged conflict. Beginning around 2007, Vang increasingly spent time away from the family home, drank heavily, and accumulated significant personal debt. Legal records show repeated actions filed against him for unpaid credit card balances. Naly Vang managed the household finances and attempted to limit his spending, which further strained the relationship.

Family members and domestic‑violence professionals later described Vang as emotionally abusive, though there was no consistent pattern of physical violence reported during most of the marriage. In 2015, Vang moved out of the family home and filed for divorce. He sought to resolve the divorce through traditional Hmong clan mediation, while Naly pursued formal court proceedings to secure custody and child support.

As the divorce progressed, Vang became increasingly hostile. Police were called to the family residence multiple times in late 2015 during disputes over property retrieval. No arrests were made, but Vang reportedly issued threats suggesting severe consequences if alimony requests continued. Relatives later stated that Vang’s behavior deteriorated significantly after the separation, and family members believed he was experiencing untreated mental illness.

On March 22, 2017, Nengmy Vang carried out a shooting spree across multiple locations in Marathon County, Wisconsin, following an escalating divorce dispute with his wife.

Shortly before 1:00 p.m., Vang contacted his wife by phone and demanded she sign divorce documents within 24 hours, threatening to kill her if she refused. He then went to the Marathon Savings Bank branch in Schofield, where Naly Vang was employed as a teller.

Inside the bank, Vang confronted his wife and asked her to sign the papers, stating in Hmong whether she wanted to die. He briefly left the building, then returned carrying a black bag and a loaded handgun. Vang opened fire, fatally shooting two bank employees: Dianne Look, 67, the branch manager, and Karen Barclay, 62, a teller.

Naly Vang fled the scene and contacted law enforcement from a nearby business.

After leaving the bank, Vang drove to the offices of Tlusty, Kennedy & Dirks, where his wife’s divorce attorney, Sara Quirt Sann, worked. Vang entered the building, held two individuals at gunpoint, and demanded to be taken to Quirt Sann’s office. After confronting her, he shot and killed the 43‑year‑old attorney.

Vang then returned to his apartment in the Village of Weston. As officers established a perimeter, a gunshot was fired from inside the apartment, killing Detective Jason Weiland, a 40‑year‑old veteran officer with the Everest Metropolitan Police Department.

The killing of Detective Weiland initiated a three‑hour standoff. Law enforcement attempted to negotiate with Vang via loudspeaker. During this period, Vang placed two 911 calls expressing regret for the killings and requesting media coverage. Police evacuated nearby residents, cut power to the apartment, and deployed an armored vehicle to breach part of the exterior wall.

After officers observed Vang armed inside the apartment, he was shot multiple times by police. Vang was transported to a hospital in Wausau, where he died later that evening from his wounds.

The shooting prompted widespread community mourning across Marathon County. Memorials were held for the victims, particularly Detective Weiland and attorney Sara Quirt Sann, whose death highlighted safety concerns for family‑law professionals.

In response, Wisconsin lawmakers introduced Wisconsin Assembly Bill 825, later known as “Sara’s Law.” The legislation expanded existing statutes protecting judges and prosecutors to include family‑law attorneys, guardians ad litem, and corporate counsel. The law made threats or harm against these professionals a felony offense.

The bill passed the Wisconsin Legislature without debate and was signed into law by Scott Walker in February 2018, becoming the first law of its kind in the United States.