Nashville, Tennessee entered unfamiliar territory on Monday, becoming yet another map pin in a grim, but growing, list of gun massacres across the United States.
Three children and three adults were killed in a mass shooting at The Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville’s Green Hills neighborhood, on Monday.
Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, all nine years old, were among the victims. Cynthia Peak, 61, Mike Hill, 61, and Katherine Koonce, 60 are the adult victims. Peak was a substitute teacher, Hill was a custodian, and Koonce Covenant’s principal.
According to police, the shooter, Audrey Elizabeth Hale, 28, of Nashville, was killed by responding officers.
According to Nashville Police Chief John Drake, Hale is a former student of the school. According to police, they discovered a “manifesto,” a map detailing entry points into the school, and other materials.
On Monday afternoon, local and federal authorities continued their search of the Nashville home Hale shared with his parents, stating that no prior criminal history had been discovered.
The Nashville police further confirmed that Audrey, purchased seven guns legally and hid them at home.
According to investigators, the suspect’s parents believed the 28-year-old should not own weapons and were unaware the guns were hidden in their home.
The police has confirmed that the suspect was under “doctor’s care for an emotional disorder.”
Officers revealed that the school was targeted rather than any specific individual.
There are no laws in Tennessee that allow police to seize firearms from violent suspects.
According to Gun Violence Archive, a non-profit that tracks gun violence data, the attack was America’s 131st mass shooting so far in 2023 alone.
According to an Associated Press database, there have been 15 mass shootings at schools or universities in the United States since the Columbine High School massacre in 1999.
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