LEAVE. AND NEW INTO THE NEWSROOM, DETAILS ABOUT THE LIFE, THE LIFE HISTORY OF THE SUSPECT. JADE JARVIS JOINING US WITH MORE JADE. WELL, TIFFANY, COURT DOCUMENTS STATE THAT PHOENIX EICHNER WAS PREVIOUSLY AT THE CENTER OF A CUSTODY DISPUTE BETWEEN HIS PARENTS THAT STRETCHED FROM THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE TO NORWAY. EICHNER WAS KNOWN AS CHRISTIAN GUNNAR ERIKSEN UNTIL 2020, BEFORE CHANGING HIS NAME. THOSE DOCUMENTS STATE THAT HE WAS ON MEDICATION FOR SEVERAL HEALTH AND MENTAL ISSUES, INCLUDING A GROWTH HORMONE DISORDER AND ADHD. IN MARCH 2015, DOCUMENTS SAY THAT EICHNER’S BIOLOGICAL MOTHER, ANN MARIE ERIKSEN, TOLD EICHNER’S FATHER THAT SHE WAS TAKING HIM TO SOUTH FLORIDA FOR SPRING BREAK, BUT INSTEAD THEY ACCUSED HER OF TAKING HIM TO NORWAY IN VIOLATION OF A CHILD CUSTODY ORDER. THE DOCUMENTS STATE THAT EICHNER’S FATHER SAID HE HAD DEVELOPMENTAL DELAYS AND SPECIAL NEEDS, WHICH HE FEARED WOULD NOT BE TAKEN CARE OF WITHOUT ACCESS TO HIS DOCTORS IN THE UNITED STATES. EVENTUALLY, EICHNER WAS BROUGHT BACK TO THE U.S. AND HIS MOTHER WAS ARRESTED AND CHARGED. THEN, IN OCTOBER 2015, EICHNER’S MOTHER FILED A LAWSUIT ON BEHALF OF HER AND HER SON AGAINST EICHNER’S FATHER AND STEPMOTHER. SHERIFF’S DEPUTY JESSICA EICHNER, AND TWO OTHER RELATIVES. THE LAWSUIT CLAIMED PARENTAL ALIENATION AND THAT EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL HARM DONE TO EICHNER WOULD BE EVIDENT FOR YEARS AND WOULD REQUIRE COUNSELING, AND THAT LAWSUIT SOUGHT $80,000 IN DAMAGES TO USE TOWARD EICHNER’S COLLEGE FUND, BUT A JUDGE DISMISSED IT SEVEN MONTHS LATER. IN
Suspected Florida State shooter was in custody dispute that spanned from Florida Panhandle to Norway
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Updated: 1:20 PM CDT Apr 18, 2025
Phoenix Ikner, formerly known as Christian Gunnar Eriksen until 2020, was involved in a complex custody dispute that led to his abduction to Norway by his mother and subsequent legal battles. Ikner is believed to have used his stepmother’s former service weapon, investigators said, to carry out the mass shooting on Florida State's campus that killed two people and injured six others. Authorities have not yet revealed a motive for the shooting, which began around lunchtime Thursday just outside the student union.Documents state that Ikner was on medication for several health and mental issues, including a growth hormone disorder and ADHD.In March 2015, documents say that Ikner's biological mother, Anne-Mari Eriksen, told Ikner's father that she was taking him to South Florida for spring break. Instead, they accuse her of taking him to Norway in violation of a child custody order.The documents state that Ikner's father said he had developmental delays and special needs, which he feared would not be taken care of without access to his doctors in the United States.Eventually, Ikner was brought back to the U.S., and his mother was arrested and charged.Then, in October 2015, Ikner's mother filed a lawsuit on behalf of her and her son against Ikner's father and stepmother, Sheriff's Deputy Jessica Ikner, and two other relatives. The lawsuit claimed parental alienation and that emotional and psychological harm done to Ikner would be evident for years and would require counseling.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Phoenix Ikner, formerly known as Christian Gunnar Eriksen until 2020, was involved in a complex custody dispute that led to his abduction to Norway by his mother and subsequent legal battles.
Ikner is believed to have used his stepmother’s former service weapon, investigators said, to carry out the mass shooting on Florida State's campus that killed two people and injured six others. Authorities have not yet revealed a motive for the shooting, which began around lunchtime Thursday just outside the student union.
Documents state that Ikner was on medication for several health and mental issues, including a growth hormone disorder and ADHD.
In March 2015, documents say that Ikner's biological mother, Anne-Mari Eriksen, told Ikner's father that she was taking him to South Florida for spring break. Instead, they accuse her of taking him to Norway in violation of a child custody order.
The documents state that Ikner's father said he had developmental delays and special needs, which he feared would not be taken care of without access to his doctors in the United States.
Eventually, Ikner was brought back to the U.S., and his mother was arrested and charged.
Then, in October 2015, Ikner's mother filed a lawsuit on behalf of her and her son against Ikner's father and stepmother, Sheriff's Deputy Jessica Ikner, and two other relatives. The lawsuit claimed parental alienation and that emotional and psychological harm done to Ikner would be evident for years and would require counseling.
