Tallahassee – In 2020, Christian Gunnar Eriksen went before a judge in the uniform of the Navy Junior Reserve Officer’s training squad and testified that his name would legally be changed to Phoenix Ichner.
A 10th Grade Honorary Roll student at Lincoln High School cited “tragic event” in 2015. Arrest records accused her mother, Anne Marie Eriksen, who was arrested at Fort Lauderdale airport and lured him to Norway.
“He chose the name Phoenix,” Leon County court documents say “as it renews its rise from the ashes.”
On Thursday, police say Ichner walked to Florida State campus with a handgun and fired fire just before noon, causing at least six people to injure and killing two. His motive remains unknown.
Documents obtained by the Miami Herald shed light on the lives of suspected mass shootings at the heart of a long-standing custody battle between parents dating back to 2007. Documents filed by Ichner and his father in Leon County Circuit Court show that he was physically abused by his mother in 2015, and that Florida’s family and child care department had conducted an ongoing investigation.
Ichner grew up in Tallahassee and has lived mainly since 2015 with her father, Christopher Ichner and stepmother, Jessica Ichner, and Leon County Sheriff’s aide Jessica Ichner. His father married Jessica Eekner in 2010.
Court records show prior and post-rear communications between parents and ongoing medical appointments. A possible affidavit in April 2015, a month after her mother took her to Norway, said Ichner was taking the medication for “some health and mental issues,” including growth hormone disorders and ADHD.
A petition for an injunction signed by Ichner and his father in 2015 explains that Eriksen was hurting Ichner on his lap, noting that his paternal grandmother took a photo. He also explains the incident that Ichner confided on March 13, 2015, to his friend, his father, and his step mother.
“Christian called us on his cell phone and said he was being abused,” the testimony reads.
Eriksen could not be immediately contacted for comment. In a civil lawsuit claiming slander and honour-loss, she said Christopher and Jessica Eekner had falsely filed against her and harassed her. The lawsuit was dismissed.
On a Facebook account that appears to belong to Eriksen, she wrote on May 14, 2023, “I love being the mother of my son Christian Gunnar (Phoenix).”
According to court documents, Phoenix Echner decided in 2017 that he “wanted a new start in his life” and decided to change his name. During the hearing, “the court determined he was a young man who was mentally, emotionally and physically mature,” the report said. At one point he joined the Leon County Sheriff’s Office. He attended office training and participated in Youth Advisory Committee.
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“The audience is tragic in more ways than ever,” Leon County Sheriff Walter A. McNeill said at a press conference on FSU’s campus after filming.
“He was immersed in the family at the Leon County Sheriff’s Office and was involved in many of the training programs we have,” McNeill said.
This is a broken news article and will be updated.
This story was created with financial support from the Essayman Family Foundation in collaboration with Journalism’s fundraising partners. The Miami Herald maintains full editing control of this work.
