N. Leigh Hunt: The Brenda Ann Spencer Story
I Don’t Like Mondays: The True Story Behind America’s First Modern School Shooting
by N. Leigh Hunt
In this episode of Another Nobody, we take a deep, unflinching look at the case of Brenda Spencer, the teenage girl behind what is widely considered America’s first modern school shooting.
On January 29, 1979, Spencer opened fire from her home across the street from Cleveland Elementary School, killing two adults and wounding multiple children and a police officer. When asked why she did it, her now-infamous response — “I don’t like Mondays” — became a cultural flashpoint, inspiring a hit song and shaping how mass violence would be discussed in the media for decades to come.
In this conversation, Another Nobody examines:
- What really happened that morning in San Diego
- How the media narrative formed — and what it got wrong
- The psychological and environmental factors surrounding Brenda Spencer
- Juvenile justice, sentencing, and parole controversies
- How this case became a blueprint for modern mass-shooting coverage
Drawing on years of research and historical context, the episode cuts through myths, internet folklore, and sensationalism to explore the human, cultural, and systemic forces behind a case that still echoes today.
This is not a glorification — it’s a sober, necessary examination of a moment that changed America.
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