Iowa high school principal who tried to distract shooter dies, governor says

The principal of an Iowa high school who was shot while trying to distract a gunman at the campus has died, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced Sunday.

Dan Marburger, principal of Perry High School, “courageously put himself in harm’s way to protect his students, and ultimately gave his own life to save them,” Reynolds (R) wrote in a statement.

Marburger, 56, had been in critical condition after he was shot at the school Jan. 4. That morning, Dylan Butler, 17, opened fire before classes, killing a sixth-grader and injuring seven other people, including Marburger.

According to Marburger’s daughter, he had tried to talk with Butler and “distract him long enough for some students to get out of the cafeteria.” “That’s just Dad,” she wrote in a Facebook post after the shooting.

In Marburger’s honor, all flags in Iowa will fly at half-staff from Sunday until sunset on the day of his funeral and interment, Reynolds said.

Marburger suffered multiple gunshot wounds.