Reporting on Brenda Spencer
The Washington Post
Reported coverage offers a concise introduction.
1979 · San Diego, California
Brenda Spencer
Teen & school
Photo credit
California Department of Corrections / Wikimedia Commons · Public domain (California government). Cropped/resized.Photographs are cropped to fit. Photo dates and original images are available through the source credits.
Sixteen-year-old Brenda Spencer fired at an elementary school from her San Diego home in 1979, killing two staff members and injuring children and a police officer. Her remark about disliking Mondays became notorious. The victims’ experiences form an essential part of the case beyond that phrase.
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The Story
When1979
WhereSan Diego, California
In this collection34 resources
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Deadly Women — Thrill Killers (full episode)
youtube.com
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There’s Danger Here — I Don’t Like Mondays
Apple Podcasts
An audio option for exploring this case while listening.
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Blogs & Essays
Read our articles here and explore outside perspectives, credited to their writers and publications. See this case in the Journal →
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Blogs & essays
1 itemsAbout these sources
Outside essays and reading guides reflect their authors’ perspectives. Compare claims with reported and primary sources.
totalcrime · Substack · Blog / essay
Did Brenda Spencer carry out the first school shooting and are the rest just copycats ?
An outside blog or essay discussing Brenda Spencer. Read the author’s analysis alongside the dated reporting and court sources in this case guide. Some publishers require a subscription.
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Books
CONTINUE YOUR READING
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Books
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Movies & TV
Movies
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TV & documentaries
4 itemsAbout these sources
Episodes, documentaries and title listings. Season and episode numbers follow the linked catalog and can differ by service. Air dates are separate from crime dates. Playback availability varies by service and region.
youtube.com
Deadly Women — Thrill Killers (full episode)
Nonfiction screen coverage of this case. The linked page identifies the program or episode; playback, subscriptions, and regional availability vary.
Screen TitleAccess Varies · Check Source
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Search Amazon · paid linkViewing options & episode details
Title search; Amazon availability is not confirmed. Check the edition, format, and viewing region.
IMDb · TV episode
Deadly Women — Thrill Killers (2008)
IMDb episode reference connected to the Brenda Spencer case. Listed release: 2008. Cast, credits, and title information; viewing availability is separate.
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Search Amazon · paid linkCredits & title details on IMDb
Title search; Amazon availability is not confirmed. Check the edition, format, and viewing region.
IMDb · TV episode
CBS 8 San Diego — Brenda Spencer archival interview (1993)
IMDb reference for a 1993 CBS 8 interview with Brenda Spencer, republished as an archival feature in 2025. Cast, credits, and title information; viewing availability is separate.
Screen TitleTitle Details · Not Playback
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Search Amazon · paid linkCredits & title details on IMDb
Title search; Amazon availability is not confirmed. Check the edition, format, and viewing region.
IMDb · TV episode
Killer Kids — Deadly Compulsion/Cults and Gangs (2014)
IMDb episode reference connected to the Brenda Spencer case. Listed release: 2014. Cast, credits, and title information; viewing availability is separate.
Screen TitleTitle Details · Not Playback
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Search Amazon · paid linkCredits & title details on IMDb
Title search; Amazon availability is not confirmed. Check the edition, format, and viewing region.
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Audiobooks
An audiobook edition has not been confirmed for this case yet. You can check the audiobook catalog or explore the case’s podcasts.
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Fiction Work
Fiction Work
Browse all →Scripted stories and fictional inspirations. Scenes, characters, and dialogue can differ from the record.
No verified fictional adaptation or inspiration has been identified in this collection. Nonfiction coverage is listed in the other media sections.
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Podcasts
Podcasts
15 itemsAbout these sources
Audio episodes and oral histories. Personal recollections are attributed perspectives; some services require sign-in.
Apple Podcasts
There’s Danger Here — I Don’t Like Mondays
Direct episode page for this case or its screen adaptation. Open it for listening options and the publisher’s episode notes.
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RedHanded
Episode 310 - Brenda Spencer: ‘I Don’t Like Mondays’
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released August 10, 2023. About 57 minutes.
PodcastAccess Varies · Check Source
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This Is Monsters
The Story of Brenda Spencer
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released April 5, 2021. About 16 minutes.
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Once Upon A Crime
Killer Kids: Brenda Spencer
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released July 26, 2016. About 48 minutes.
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Deviant Criminology
Brenda Spencer: Unraveling the Tragedy and Its Aftermath
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released November 4, 2024. About 60 minutes.
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Crack House Chronicles
Ep. 65 Brenda Spencer - I Don't Like Mondays
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released March 1, 2021. About 40 minutes.
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True Crime Kent
Brenda Spencer: A Particularly Bad Case of the Mondays
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released June 9, 2026. About 133 minutes.
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Cult Liter with Spencer Henry
Brenda Spencer
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released December 17, 2024. About 33 minutes.
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True Crime With Elli Mac
Brenda Spencer: The 16-Year-Old School Sniper Who ‘Didn’t Like Mondays’
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released February 22, 2024. About 28 minutes.
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Rigor Mortis
Brenda Spencer: Episodio 23
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released April 17, 2022. About 36 minutes.
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Beyond Contempt True Crime
Brenda Spencer
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released January 3, 2020. About 43 minutes.
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Dark Origins
The Boomtown Rats "I Don't Like Mondays" and Brenda Spencer
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released July 16, 2025. About 54 minutes.
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True Crime Talkers: San Diego
3- 1st School Shooter, Brenda Spencer
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released January 30, 2021. About 21 minutes.
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True Crime University
Season 1, Episode 2 Brenda Spencer (school shooter)- REMASTERED
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released February 15, 2021. About 41 minutes.
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True Crime Cam
24 - The First Female School Shooter: Brenda Spencer (Cleveland Elementary)
Podcast coverage of the Brenda Spencer case. Released March 1, 2022. About 46 minutes.
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Social Media
BRING YOUR PERSPECTIVE
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News & Reading
More Reading & Audio
0 sourcesExplore book records, previews, library audiobooks and selected documents. Access labels distinguish free material from library loans and paid subscriptions.
No additional case-specific reading source was confirmed in this review. The reporting and original summaries elsewhere on this page remain available.
Reading Access Notes
Search reviewed 2026-09-16. Sources searched: Google Books, Internet Archive, Open Library, Library of Congress, Smithsonian Magazine, The Atavist Magazine, Google Books (case/title search), Scribd, Everand, OverDrive and hoopla (combined title search). Search indexing is incomplete; this is not an exhaustive list of the web. Access can change by edition, country and library membership. Library loans may require sign-in or a wait. Everand titles may need a paid subscription; a trial is not permanent free access. Scribd documents are third-party uploads, with uploader details noted where checked. We link to source pages and write our own descriptions rather than reproducing copyrighted books.
A separate Texas Monthly search was blocked by the publisher’s automated-access rules and could not be verified.
News & reporting
1 itemsThe Washington Post
Reporting on Brenda Spencer
Linked reporting or commentary. Read the source date for its historical context; access may require a subscription.
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Newspaper clippings
2 itemsFeatured newspaper clipping
Read our original summary below. The archive link opens the newspaper’s own clipping viewer.
The Los Angeles Times · 1979-06-17 · Page 8
Cleveland Elementary after the shooting
A follow-up visits the San Diego school months after the attack, remembering Burton Wragg and Mike Suchar and describing survivors' recovery.
Community and survivor-focused reporting.
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Read the original at Newspapers.com. Access and subscription requirements are set by the archive.
Open full clipping at Newspapers.comMore from the newspaper archive
Continue with these dated reports on Newspapers.com.
Arizona Republic · 1979-02-02 · Page 32
Experts react to the San Diego school attack
A contemporary feature asks specialists about violence by young people following Brenda Spencer's arrest.
Commentary includes speculative psychological explanations; these are not verified diagnoses of Spencer.
Read this article on Newspapers.comKeep following the newspaper trail.
Search original reporting, follow the trial, and compare how newspapers covered the case over time.
Explore more on Newspapers.comNewspapers.com controls access to its archive. A subscription may be required; existing subscribers can sign in.
Internet Archive
1 itemsAbout these sources
Library records and preserved media. A catalog listing does not guarantee full reading or playback.
Internet Archive · TV News Archive
America Reports : FOXNEWSW : March 27, 2023 10:00am-11:00am PDT
The archive indexes this broadcast under Brenda Spencer. It may contain several stories; use any available captions or previews to locate the relevant segment. Full playback may be restricted.
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Court & Files
Court records & documents
1 itemsAbout these sources
Documents are labeled by type and scope. Allegations in filings are not findings of guilt. This collection is not the complete case file.
Parole-hearing transcriptArchive copy
Brenda Spencer — 2009 parole-hearing transcript
Transcript of Brenda Spencer’s subsequent parole consideration hearing. It discusses the Cleveland Elementary School shooting and the board’s review; this is an administrative hearing, not the original trial.
- Court / agency
- California Board of Parole Hearings
- Document date
- August 13, 2009
- Case / citation
- W14944
- Hosted by
- School Shooters .info research archive
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Positive Outcome
Positive Outcome
0 itemsAbout these sources
Documented laws, advocacy and reforms. Listing a change does not claim it is effective or universally supported.
No case-specific reform has been verified for this collection yet.
Social Media
9 itemsAbout these sources
Case-specific posts, videos and communities. Community opinions are separate from verified reporting. Platforms may require sign-in.
CBS 8 San Diego
'I don't like Mondays' school shooter Brenda Spencer gets another chance at parole
Video from CBS 8 San Diego covering the Brenda Spencer case. Length: 4:17.
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CBS 8 San Diego
Convicted San Diego school shooter Brenda Spencer exclusive CBS 8 interview in 1993
Interview or news segment from CBS 8 San Diego covering the Brenda Spencer case. Length: 18:11.
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CBS 8 San Diego
1993: Convicted school shooter Brenda Spencer speaks with San Diego's News 8 - PART 1
Interview or news segment from CBS 8 San Diego covering the Brenda Spencer case. Length: 3:06.
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Once Upon A Crime | True Crime
EPISODE 008 KILLER KIDS: BRENDA SPENCER
Video from Once Upon A Crime | True Crime covering the Brenda Spencer case. Length: 48:15.
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Banijay Crime - Crime Documentary
The First Female School Shooter - Deadly Women - True Crime
Video from Banijay Crime - Crime Documentary covering the Brenda Spencer case. Length: 44:45.
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Banijay Crime - Crime Documentary
The "I Don’t Like Mondays" Shooter | Deadly Women | True Crime
Video from Banijay Crime - Crime Documentary covering the Brenda Spencer case. Length: 44:45.
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Show 3 more social media
Facebook · Creator channel
Rigor Mortis — Facebook page
Linked by this creator in the episode notes for “Brenda Spencer: Episodio 23.” This creator channel covers multiple cases. The matching case episode is linked below. The platform may ask you to sign in.
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Facebook · Creator channel
Beyond Contempt True Crime — Facebook page
Linked by this creator in the episode notes for “Brenda Spencer.” This creator channel covers multiple cases. The matching case episode is linked below. The platform may ask you to sign in.
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Facebook · Creator community
Beyond Contempt True Crime — Facebook group
Linked by this creator in the episode notes for “Brenda Spencer.” This discussion group covers multiple cases. The matching case episode is linked below. Group rules or membership approval may limit access.
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