She Was Shot Just Seventy-Two Hours After Learning She Passed The Bar Exam And Nearly Lost Her Life

Omaha, Nebraska. With just $750 and a dream, Shantel Thompson traveled from Nebraska to Minnesota to pursue law.

Thompson is now thirty-three years old and, after seven years of education, was ecstatic to learn that she passed the Uniform Bar Exam.

Her dream was almost tragically cut short, though, when Thompson was shot and nearly killed just seventy-two hours later.

At 6:45 p.m., Thompson was walking in an Omaha park when she was shot in her side. The bullet pierced her spine, and now, she is fighting to ever walk again.

Thompson had persevered through so much to finish law school. She took evening classes at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in order to work during the day and even lived with a school staff member until she could find an apartment.

Thompson also held about a dozen work/volunteer positions throughout her education. With so much on her plate, she sought out academic help to ensure she stayed on track.

“Shantel overcame numerous obstacles in her study of law. She will be a credit to the profession,” one of Thompson’s former professors stated.

GoFundMe; pictured above is Shantel

Thompson graduated in 2017 and was just one of twenty-five national aspiring lawyers named “Law Student of the Year.”

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