Poignant gun violence message DC gym shooting survivor scrawled on a notepad from hospital bed

A woman seriously wounded in Thursday’s deadly shooting rampage in Washington, D.C., shared a powerful message about gun violence from her hospital bed.

Susan Hamerski, of Minnesota, was shot while walking her daughter’s dog in the Logan Circle neighborhood, suffering “serious and severe” injuries, family friend Tina Wilcox, who is speaking on behalf of the family, told The Washington Post.

Hamerski is in stable condition but cannot speak. When loved ones asked her what she wanted the world to know, she picked up a notepad and wrote: “Gun control is public health,” Wilcox said.

The Minnesota woman has made it past the life-threatening stage of her injuries, Wilcox said Friday evening, though her recovery timeline remains uncertain. Her family has asked for privacy as she continues to recover.

Hamerski was among five people struck by gunfire after doctor Matt Wade Lambert, 55, killed a manager inside the Vida Fitness gym before opening fire on people from the balcony of his $1.1 million penthouse, according to police.

The incident began when Lambert fatally shot James Stuart, 46, the manager of his condominium building. Lambert became increasingly angry over a long-running dispute about black mold in his seventh-floor penthouse, police said.

After shooting Stuart with a handgun inside the gym, Lambert left the building and returned to his penthouse. From his penthouse balcony, he then used a rifle to fire at people outside, striking five victims, none of whom lived in the building. Two of those wounded were construction workers on a nearby crew.

Lambert then “barricaded” himself inside his penthouse, where he allegedly started a fire and fired shots through the door. He then took his own life using one of the three guns he had, police said.

It has since emerged that Lambert was embroiled in a bitter legal dispute with Stuart and the Metropole Condominium Association over the condition of his penthouse, which he called “psychological warfare.” He reportedly spent $300,000 fighting the dispute, draining his retirement savings, according to his attorney.

In December 2025, Lambert spoke with Washington Sun reporter Michael Brice-Saddler about the conflict, using what the journalist described as “intense, combative language.”

Lambert reportedly told a neighbor who also had complaints about the building: “If you want to see the building manager, he comes in the gym about 8 o’clock.”

During the interviews, Lambert also made a passing reference to Luigi Mangione, who pleaded guilty in connection with the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

“What are they called? Delay, deny, defend … the Luigi three?” Lambert reportedly said, referencing the phrase inscribed on Mangione’s bullet casings.