Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale identified as transgender and had detailed manifesto to attack Christian academy

[The Bobster]

Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale identified as transgender and had detailed manifesto to attack Christian academy

Nashville police revealed that the 28-year-old who shot and killed six people at the Covenant School had a detailed manifesto.

nypost.com

Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale identified as transgender and had detailed manifesto to attack Christian academy​

By
Ronny Reyes


March 27, 2023 6:01pm
Updated










Nashville police revealed that the 28-year-old who shot and killed six people at the Covenant School, including three children, identified as transgender and had a detailed manifesto to attack the Christian academy.
Officials said Audrey Hale, a former student, entered the school Monday morning by shooting through a door on the side of the building.
While inside, Hale killed Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, all age 9, as well as custodian Mike Hill and substitute teacher Cynthia Peak, both 61, and school head Katherine Koonce, 60.
Following the shootings, Hale was killed when they encountered officers on the second floor by 10:27 a.m., fourteen minutes after the alarm was raised.

Police confirmed the shooter was 28-year-old Audrey Hale, who identified as transgender.Nossi College of Art The shooting occurred at Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville.AP Photo/John Bazemore



Police said Hale was equipped with at least two assault weapons and a handgun, and in searching her family home in Nashville, officers found detailed maps and a manifesto of the attack.

“We have a manifesto, we have some writings that we’re going over that pertain to this day,” Nashville police chief John Drake said about the discovery.

The school is based in Nashville’s Green Hills neighborhood.Nicole Hester / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK The shooter killed six people and reportedly was “prepared to do more harm.” Many students, including the ones in the photo, were evacuated.AP Photo/John Bazemore
He added that Hale was “prepared to do more harm than was actually done.”

Drake said police are looking into whether Hale’s identity as a trans person played a role in the deadly shooting, with investigators coming up with theories based on their findings.

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Follow The Post’s coverage of the school shooting in Nashville

• At least 7 dead, including 3 kids, after female shooter opens fire at Nashville Christian elementary school
• Witness describes chaos following mass shooting at Nashville Christian school
• Nashville school shooter ID’d as Audrey Hale

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Police said they are in contact with the suspect’s father and will release video about the shooting in the coming days.

Hale was notably an alumnus of the small private school, which teaches students in pre-K through 6th grade and only has about 200 students enrolled, according to its website.

A child weeps while on the bus leaving the school after the shooting.Nicole Hester / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK Police are looking to find more information about the shooter after finding the 28-year-old’s manifesto.Seth Herald/Getty Images The small private school teaches students pre-K to 6th grade.AP Photo/John Bazemore Hale was killed by police on Monday morning.Linkedin/Audrey Hale
The school was founded in 2001 as a ministry of Covenant Presbyterian Church and its annual tuition fees range between $7,250 for three-day pre-school and $16,500 for pupils in kindergarten through sixth grade.

The school focuses its curriculum on biblical theology, where students take classes about the bible along with standard education courses, with the school motto being “Shepherding Hearts, Empowering Minds, Celebrating Childhood.”

The school is located in the affluent Green Hills neighborhood just south of Nashville’s Bluebird Cafe, a beloved spot for musicians and songwriters.

 

[The Bobster]

‘Resentment’ may have driven Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale: cop

“There’s some belief that there was some resentment for having to go to that school,” Police Chief John Drake told NBC News.

nypost.com

‘Resentment’ may have driven Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale: cop​

By
Andy Tillett


March 27, 2023 8:50pm
Updated









Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale may have been driven to kill by “resentment,” according to the city’s top cop.
Police have said Hale was a former student at The Covenant School, a private Christian elementary school, where Hale slaughtered three 9-year-old students and three adults Monday morning before police closed in and killed her.
But they have yet to pinpoint a clear motive.
“There’s some belief that there was some resentment for having to go to that school,” Police Chief John Drake told NBC News’ Lester Holt Monday evening. “Don’t have all the details to that just yet and that’s why this incident occurred.”
At an earlier press conference, Drake said Hale identified as transgender, though police referred to her as a woman.
It’s unclear whether Hale identified as a man or woman and investigators are looking into whether her identity played a role in the mass shooting.
A search of Hale’s Nashville home turned up a manifesto, as well as detailed maps of the school.

Audrey Hale killed children and teachers at The Covenant School in Nashville.Linkedin/Audrey Hale
She was armed with two assault rifles and a handgun, cops said.


Hale’s mother, Norma Hale, worked as a coordinator at a local church and posted about religion frequently on Facebook.


She also gushed about her two children, Audrey and her brother Scott, regularly.

Hale had a manifesto about the shooting in her home. Reuters/ Kevin Wurm Students from The Covenant School get off a bus to meet their parents at the reunification site at the Woodmont Baptist Church.AP/Mark Zaleski
Drake said while Audrey targeted Covenant, “she targeted random students in the school … whoever she came in contact with, she fired rounds.”


The dead included 9-year-olds Hallie Scruggs, the daughter of the school’s pastor; Evelyn Dieckhaus and William Kenney — and adults Cynthia Peak, 61; Katherine Koonce, 60; and Mike Hill, 61.


Koonce was the academy’s headmistress.

 

[The Bobster]

Nashville school shooter’s chilling final messages to pal revealed: ‘I’m planning to die’

Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale sent her friend, Averianna Patton, a chilling “suicide note” on Instagram minutes before shooting at The Covenant School, writing: “I’m planning to die today.”…

nypost.com

Nashville school shooter’s chilling final messages to pal revealed: ‘I’m planning to die’​

By
Yaron Steinbuch


March 28, 2023 7:26am
Updated










Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale sent a friend a chilling “suicide note” minutes before slaughtering three children and three adults – writing her: “I’m planning to die today.”
Hale, 28, messaged Averianna Patton, her former middle school basketball teammate, on Instagram at 9:57 a.m. Monday, NewsChannel 5 reported.
“So basically that post I made on here about you, that was basically a suicide note. I’m planning to die today,” Hale wrote, using the name Aiden, according to messages Patton gave the outlet.

Nashville mass shooter Audrey Hale sent her friend a series of chilling messages on Instagram minutes before launching her deadly attack inside The Covenant School.AP
“THIS IS NOT A JOKE!!!” wrote Hale, who identified as transgender. “You’ll probably hear about me on the news after I die.”

Hale added: “This is my last goodbye. I love you … See you again in another life.” She signed the missive “Audrey (Aiden).”

Patton replied: “Audrey! You have so much more life to live. I pray God keeps and covers you.”

Hale messaged Averianna Patton (pictured), her former middle school basketball teammate, on Instagram, according to reports. Facebook / Averianna Patton Audrey Hale sent her friend Averianna Patton a series of chilling messages on Instagram telling her she planned to die.Submitted
In response, Hale wrote: “I know but I don’t want to live. I’m so sorry. I’m not trying to upset you or get attention. I just need to die. I wanted to tell you first because you are the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen and known all my life.”

She added: “My family doesn’t know what I’m about to do. One day this will make more sense. I’ve left more than enough evidence behind. But something bad is about to happen.”

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Follow The Post’s coverage of the school shooting in Nashville

• At least 7 dead, including 3 kids, after transgender shooter opens fire at Nashville Christian elementary school
• Chilling footage shows Nashville school shooter Audrey Hale blast front doors, roam hallways
• Nashville school shooter’s chilling final messages to pal revealed: ‘I’m planning to die’

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Moments later, Hale shot out the front doors of The Covenant School, a private Christian academy, and walked inside clutching two assault rifles and a handgun.

She gunned down three 9-year-olds and three staffers before she was fatally shot by police at 10:27 a.m. — 14 minutes after they received a call about an active shooter.

“I tried to comfort and encourage her and subsequently reached out to the Suicide Prevention Help Line after being instructed to by my father at 10:08 a.m.,” Patton told NewsChannel 5.

“Audrey has shared with others that she had been suicidal in the past and I knew to take this serious [sic],” she added.

“This is my last goodbye. I love you … See you again in another life,” Hale wrote.Submitted Patton told the media that she tried to comfort Hale, and reached out to the Suicide Prevention Help Line. Facebook / Averianna Patton
The friend told the outlet she called the Nashville Davidson County Sheriff’s Office at 10:13 a.m. about the matter and was instructed to call Nashville’s non-emergency number.

“I called Nashville’s non-emergency line at 10:14 a.m. and was on hold for nearly seven minutes before speaking with someone who said that they would send an officer to my home. An officer did not come to my home until 3:29 p.m.,” Patton told the station.

“After phone calls from friends and Audrey’s name was released as the shooter at Covenant Nashville school, I learned that Audrey was the shooter and that she had reached out to me prior to the shooting,” she said.

“My heart is with all of the families affected and I’m devastated by what has happened,” Patton said.Facebook / Averianna Patton Hale killed six people and reportedly was “prepared to do more harm,” police said.AP
“My heart is with all of the families affected and I’m devastated by what has happened,” Patton added.

Hale, who was a former student at the school, killed 9-year-olds Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and Williams Kinney, custodian Mike Hill, 61, substitute teacher Cynthia Peak, 61, and school headmaster Katherine Koonce, 60, officials said.

Police said she left behind a manifesto and a map that she used to plan the massacre.

If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.