Police identified the student victims as Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, all age 9. We are grieving tremendous loss and are in shock coming out of the terror that shattered our school and church," the school said in a statement Monday night. Drake said investigators believed the shooting stemmed from some resentment the suspect harbored for having to go to that school as a younger person. But Peak never arrived home on Monday. A federal law enforcement source verified to NBC News that no direct motive has been established in the investigation and suggested that the driving force of the attack was similar to previous school shootings in which the assailant was drawn to other mass killers. According to Drake, Hale appeared to have some training to shoot from a higher level, and knew to stand away from the glass so (he) wouldnt be an easy target., 'A WAKE UP CALL':Channel 4 reporter 'immediately was taken back' to school shooting she witnessed in 2010. Officer Rex Engelbert fired four 5.56 rounds from his rifle, police said Monday, while Officer Michael Collazo fired four rounds from his 9 mm pistol. Last week, a 17-year-old student shot and wounded two faculty members at a high school in Denver. ARMED CONGRESSMAN: Andy Ogles, GOP congressman representing Nashville, criticized for posing with guns in family Christmas photo. "Audrey definitely admired Sydney," Hardcastle said. We have to do more to stop gun violence ripping our communities apart, the president said at the White House. My moms brother Lord help me and my family please pray for all my cousins.. Hale, who lived in Nashville, had legally purchased seven guns from five different local gun stores, the chief told reporters Tuesday. A couple prays at the memorial for the victims of the shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville. Fallout from the Covenant shooting was swift and dovetailed into the political crossfires resulting in the expulsion of two state lawmakers who protested gun violence inside the state Capitol before they were reinstated days later. Covenant School community seeks prayer in wake of deadly mass shooting, How to help those affected by the Covenant School shooting in Nashville, What Vanderbilt's Clark Lea said about Nashville Covenant School shooting, Nashville police moved fast, saved lives in Covenant shooting, experts say, Channel 4 reporter 'immediately was taken back' to school shooting she witnessed in 2010, At the same time staff at Woodmont Baptist Church. All rights reserved. In a subsequent NBC News television interview, Drake said investigators believed the shooting stemmed from "some resentment" the suspect harbored "for having to go to that school" as a younger person. NASHVILLE, Tenn. Authorities released intensepolice body camera footage Tuesday from a deadly shooting rampage at a local Christian elementary schoolthat killed three students and three staffers. During one call, made at 10:13 a.m., a woman in an art room closet inside . Police said Hale was armed with "significant ammunition.". At the state level, Tennessee in 2021 did away with its permit requirement for carrying a concealed handgun and now allows anyone aged 21 and older to carry a firearm, either openly or concealed, without a permit, as long as they are legally allowed to purchase the weapon. Body camera footage released Tuesday shows armed Nashville officers swiftly moving from one room to another in the school before confronting Hale. The shooting at the Covenant school in Nashville was the latest in a series of mass shootings in a country that has grown increasingly unnerved by bloodshed in schools. Friends of Audrey Hale, 28, still can't grasp how the "loving" teenager they knew could go launch a deadly attack that killed six people. Its hard, because if I had been there, maybe I could have been shot.. Ken Dilanian is the justice and intelligence correspondent for NBC News, based in Washington. "She seemed like she always did, just kind of quiet," she said. Nashville school shooter wrote manifesto and drew maps, per police. QUICK REACTION: 14-minute timeline: From the Nashville school shooter's break-in to how police responded. A candlelight vigil will be held Wednesday night at Public Square Park to honor the victims of Monday's shooting. The Nashville school shooter fell into an emotional spiral after the recent death of a close friend, ex-classmate says Friends of Audrey Hale, 28, still can't grasp how the "loving" teenager they. But Rosanne Cash, daughter of the late Nashville country music star Johnny Cash and a singer-songwriter in her own right, responded by criticizing Blackburn's ties to the National Rifle Association (NRA) gun lobby. Surveillance video shows him carrying and aiming an assault rifle as he walks hallways. The assault also marks the 89th shooting on K-12 school grounds in 2023 an average of one every day according to theK-12 School Shooting Database. The Covenant School, founded in 2001, is a ministry of Covenant Presbyterian Church in the Green Hills neighborhood of Nashville with about 200 students, according to the school's website. "That reunification work is really gospel work that we were honored to be a part of Gods plan in that moment.". Woman who survived Highland Park shooting makes plea in Nashville, First lady Jill Biden responds to Nashville mass shooting, wounded two faculty members at a high school in Denver, Revealing trends, details and anguish of every US event since 2006, the Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, shared through tears a story of Evelyn Dieckhaus, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. The Covenant School students who died Monday were all 9 years old, andthe staff members were in their 60s. April 12, 2023. Dieckhaus was a third grader at the Covenant School and her sister, a fifth grader, is a member of the disciples class at the church. Hebrought three to the school Monday, one of them an AR-style rifle. The 28-year-old who killed three children and three adults at a Christian school in Nashville last week fired 152 rounds, Nashville police said Monday, adding that while they have yet to determine a motive, the shooter planned the attack over a period of months and studied other mass murderers. The shooter, identified by police as former student Audrey. "It could have been far worse. ", "We dont know all of the details of how or why this happened, and we may never fully know," Battle said. Metro Nashville police said Monday afternoon Hale fired 152 total rounds, 126 from a rifle and 26 nine millimeter rounds from a pistol they carried in mass shooting. President Joe Biden said he spoke with Drake and "thetwo officers that went in and saved the lives,'' and was working on reaching out to families of the victims. The Woodmont Christian Church will be organizing a fund for the affected families as a way to help with counseling costs. Protesters gather inside the Tennessee State Capitol to call for an end to gun violence and support stronger gun laws after a deadly shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tenn., March 30 . Aaron said there were no police personnel assigned to the school. My heart is broken I do not understand why someone would shoot up a school with precious babies inside. He added:"All of Tennessee was hurt yesterday, but some parents woke up without children, children woke up without parents and without teachers, and spouses woke up without their loved ones. The Covenant school has about 209 students from pre-school through sixth grade and 42 staff members, Aaron said. "But I dont know if I could go off that two-minute interactionand say how she was feeling.. "I've seen too many of these myself," Biden said. Editor's note: For the latest news on the Nashville school shooting, follow our coverage from Tuesday, March 28 here. "We have to do more to stop gun violence. "We've got one down," he says before turning right down the hallway. Hale, who police said was under care for an emotional disorder, had legally purchased seven firearms and hidden them at home, per Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake. Patton said she called the Nashville Davidson County Sheriff's Office and was instructed to call Nashville's non-emergency number. The suspected shooter, identified as 28-year-old Audrey Hale, was fatally shot by officers who responded to the scene at The Covenant School. We cant ask her anymore, and we cant get in her mind, Giacalone said. A former student shot through the doors of a Christian elementary school Monday and killed three children and three adults after elaborately planning the massacre by drawing out a detailed map and conducting surveillance of the building, police said. "A lot of comments about 'you were all that mattered' [and] 'Ill miss you forever,' etc.," Colomy said, paraphrasing what she saw of Hale's social media postings. "These brave officers ran toward the gunfire and eliminated the threat as they are trained to do.''. First lady Jill Biden also addressed the shootingas she opened the National League of Cities event in Washington. We love the Scruggs family and mourn with them over their precious daughter Hallie," Mark Davis, senior pastor at Park Cities Presbyterian Church, said in a statement. But Peak never arrived home on Monday. As a pediatric surgeon, my first thought was, if I had still been there, could I have rendered immediate aid to these victims, Grayson said. Hardcastle, a middle school art teacher, last ran into Hale a month ago in downtown Nashville at a show by their mutual friend and radio personality Averianna Patton. Its been characterized as a manifesto. Three children and two adults were takento Monroe Carell Jr. Childrens Hospital at Vanderbilt with gunshot wounds, and all fivewere pronounced dead there, said Craig Boerner, spokesperson forVanderbilt University Medical Center. Hale entered the Covenant school with an AR-style rifle, anAR-style pistol and another handgun, police said. A shooting at a private religious grade school in Nashville, Tennessee, left three adults and three 9-year-olds dead on March 27. For some, that moment never came. Exclusive news, data and analytics for financial market professionals, Reporting by Kevin Wurm in Nashville; Additional reporting by Kanishka Singh, Tyler Clifford, Rich McKay, Brad Brooks, Joseph Ax and Brendan O'Brien; Writing by Jonathan Allen and Steve Gorman; Editing by Sandra Maler and Stephen Coates, Texas man accused of killing five neighbors was deported four times, US may default June 1 without debt ceiling hike; Biden calls McCarthy to meet, Biden urges Republicans take debt default off table, warns interest rates would jump, American Airlines pilots authorize a strike mandate, Brazil police shoot dead 4 illegal gold miners on Yanomami reservation, Sudanese fleeing north face arduous crossing into Egypt, Kuwait again dissolves reinstated parliament by decree, British royals release photo of a beaming Princess Charlotte, Israeli attack puts Syria's Aleppo airport out of service, one soldier killed -state media. Audrey Hale sent direct messages from The Covenant School parking lot to a former middle school basketball teammate minutes before Monday's shooting. Its important they attend to the basic comfort need, be present with their children.. Hale and Sims attended Isaiah T. Creswell Middle School of the Arts and the Nashville School of the Arts. The 61-year-old wasone of six victims slain in one of the deadliest school shootings in Tennessee history. Erik Ortiz is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital focusing on racial injustice and social inequality. I was really impressed that with all that was going on, someone took control and said Lets go, lets go., Drake said at Tuesday's briefing. Just before the shooting at The Covenant School, Patton got a message from Hale, who warned that something bad was about to happen. Hale used male pronouns on a LinkedIn page that listed recent jobs in graphic design and grocery delivery. Three children and three adults were killed in a mass shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday. Nashville police released more 911 calls on Thursday evening from inside of The Covenant School during Monday's shooting. Hardcastle struggled to reconcile the kind teenager she knew a decade ago as the same person who fatally shot three 9-year-olds, a school administrator, a custodian and a substitute teacher Monday. Bill Lee said in a recorded address Tuesday night, his first extended comments on the shooting. According to a tweet from Nashville police, the shooter had "significant ammunition. Two of the victims were school. One of Hale's former instructors at the Nossi College of Art & Design, Maria Colomy, said Sims' death took a great emotional toll on her former student. Nashvilles chief of police, John Drake, told NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt that the shooter had planned to attack several different places, saying a manifesto belonging to the suspect indicates that there was going to be shootings at multiple locations, and the school was one of them. "It's ripping our communities apart ripping at the very soul of our nation. "We have to do more to stop gun violence," Biden said. Police received a call of an active shooter at 10:13 a.m., Aaron said. It is known that Hale considered the actions of other mass murderers, the release said. 'There is no universal school safety solution.' People visit a makeshift memorial at the entrance of The Covenant School in Nashville, Tenn. mass shooting at a Nashville Christian school, called for federal law enforcement agencies, Officials find suicide note, journals, and weapons at Nashville shooter's home, school shooter fell into an emotional spiral, reported the CBS affiliate WTVF in Nashville, the disinformation surrounding transgender people, LGBTQ community worried about their own safety. At least one of those was described by police as a "sawed-off shotgun," some of which can be. And it was on the upper level where [the shooter] was confronted by police and killed.. It's ripping our communities apart, ripping the soul of this nation.". Ava escaped . "I have literally mind-blowing moments like, 'What in the world? "Suspect down, suspect down," Collazo calls over the radio. "I saw the [police] body camera videos, and the way she was dressed on Monday is exactly what she looked like in high school," Hardcastle said. It was too late. Police identified the victims as Evelyn Dieckhaus, William Kinney and Hallie Scruggs, all of them age 9, and Mike Hill, 61, Katherine Koonce, 60, and Cynthia Peak, 61. Video footage released late Monday shows the first moments of the shooting. But something bad is about to happen.". The officers found the shooteron the second floor of the building that housesthe school and a Presbyterian church. The school shooting the deadliest since 21 people, including 19 children, were killed at a school in Uvalde, Texas, last May renewed the debates over the scourge of American gun violence, access to firearms and school safety. Drake spoke to President Joe Biden, who was planning to reach out to the responding officers this week. ", In a Twitter statement, Tennessee Gov. "I never saw any of our staff sit down," Parker said. Police recovered a manifesto at Hale's residence on Monday following the shooting that included "some writings" and a map of the attack and possible other targets, police said. Hale wore a black vest over a white T-shirt, camouflage pants and a backwards red baseball cap in a video that showed only the shooter in the frame. The attack was the nation's 130th mass shooting of 2023, according toGun Violence Archive, a nonprofit that tracks gun violence data. Nashville police said investigators found two more firearms, described as shotguns, at the residence. Police said Hale, who was assigned female at birth but identified as a man,bought the firearms betweenOctober 2020 and June 2022. The video begins when Englebert arrived on scene where a staff member outside the school directed officers to the second floor of the school. The massacre at The Covenant School in Nashville was the latest in a series of mass shootings in a country that has grown increasingly unnerved . "I couldnt be prouder of their character in that moment.. A few people trickled in to lay flowers against the stone wall where the memorial was set up. Reacting in Washington to the latest school shooting, President Joe Biden urged the U.S. Congress again to pass tougher gun reform legislation. For some of us, these are our friends., The senior pastor lost a daughter today, he said. 1:36 Police in Nashville say three adults and three students were killed in a shooting at a private Christian school on Monday. Erik Ortiz is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital focusing on racial injustice and social inequality. Addressing an early evening news conference, Drake said police were working on a theory about what may have precipitated the shooting and would "put that out as soon as we can." The school is kind of situated sideways, if you will. CRIME Nashville school shooting updates: School employee says staff members carried guns Nick Gray Diana Leyva Craig Shoup Kirsten Fiscus Rachel Wegner Melissa Brown Andy Humbles Josh Keefe. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Authorities initially believed the shooter might hold resentment toward her former school but they have not provided any details to publicly back up that theory. The Tennessean said Koonce was the school's headmaster. NASHVILLE, Tenn.The shooter who killed six people, including three children, at a Nashville elementary school Monday had detailed maps of the facility, considered another target and left behind writings that may shed light on a motive, authorities said. All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. On March 27, 2023, a mass school shooting occurred at The Covenant School, a Presbyterian Church in America parochial elementary school in the Green Hills neighborhood of Nashville, Tennessee.Aiden Hale, a transgender man and former student of the school, killed three nineyearold children and three adults before being shot and killed by two Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD . We will also recognize that there is so much good in this world and in each other.". Media tents lining the sidewalk across the street stretch for blocks. What spurred Hale to target The Covenant School about two decades after attending there has led to rampant speculation and placed scrutiny on what police initially said was their focus on the investigation. Hale fired more than 150 rounds during the March 27 shooting, Metro Nashville Police said . The school's motto is "Shepherding hearts. Mourners gathered at the Belmont United Methodist Church to remember and pray for the victims of The Covenant School shooting in Nashville, Tennessee. As Englebert moved to the second floor, eight gunshots can be heard down the hallway. And while little is known publicly about the shooter's gender identity and whether it even played a role in the massacre, the disinformation surrounding transgender people has also left members of the LGBTQ community worried about their own safety amid a larger debate over LGBTQ rights. Battle praised the emergency response to the shooting and acknowledged the deep grief it's brought on for those affected. I think thats a mischaracterization, personally, Rausch said in another interview with Pray In Jesus Name News. 'Aren't you tired of this? The Ogles Family," the post reads, adding in quotes: "The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference - they deserve a place of honor with all that's good." Hillsboro High School junior Alayna Mitchell was in class on Monday when Monday's shooting took place at Covenant School. Spare us the hand-wringing," Cash said on Twitter. (modern), Six people killed by shooter at school in Nashville video. In March, an armed assailant breached the campus of the Covenant School, a private academy in the Green Hills neighborhood of Nashville, and killed six people. President Joe Biden was briefed on the shooting Monday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. He commended MNPD's swift response, and called for Congress to take action to pass a ban on assault weapons. "I am truly without words and our children deserve better," she said. After the shooting, children were seen walking, holding hands and surrounded by police cars, to the nearby Woodmont Baptist church, to be reunited with parents. Within minutes, Nashville officers arrived at the scene and confronted Hale as the shooter was firing through a window at arriving police cars, per police. She recalled Hale as dressing in a "quirky, 90s style" and seeming "nice and quiet." After the shooting,Drake said officers seized written material anda map describing how the assault would unfold, as well as a plan to shoot up a different Nashville school apparentlyscrapped because of too much security., We have some writings that we are going over that pertain to this date, the actual incident, Drake said at a news conference Mondayafternoon. The attack marks the 89th shooting on K-12 school grounds in 2023, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database. Hale was a former student at The Covenant School, according to police. "If you have the power to make change and instead sit back and remain complicit, do better.". Hale shot multiple rounds into glass doors to make entry into the school. "My heart aches," she said. All rights reserved. The intruder was in a "lobby-type area," not a classroom, Aaron said. follow our coverage from Tuesday, March 28 here. The suspected shooter, identified as 28-year-old Audrey Hale . The police department said officersRex Engelbert and Michael Collazo ended the attack, and they're being widely hailed for their courage in pursuing and taking down a heavily armed shooter. Two officers from a five-member team shot the assailant in a lobby area, and the suspect was pronounced dead by 10:27 a.m. [1/12]A child weeps while on the bus leaving The Covenant School, following a mass shooting at the school in Nashville, Tennessee, U.S. March 27, 2023. Thank you to the first responders working on site. Audrey Hale was already in the parking lot. Nashville Fire Department Station 20, a station that responded to the shooting, has 14 Thanksgiving Day cards in the station's windows that personnel said were brought last fall by Covenant School students, who often brought snacks and different treats. "Our entire city stands with you. Nothing in the brief encounter at Patton's show gave Hardcastle any belief something was going to go horrifically wrong. Hale was fatally shot by a five-member police team around 10:27 a.m. in a second floor lobby. Drake said the school had an active shooter protocol. Hallie Scruggs was a student at the Covenant School. MORE: What we know about Tennessee's gun laws after Nashville shooting Patton called the Suicide Prevention Helpline minutes after reading the messages. Following a deadly school shooting last month, Republican lawmakers in Tennessee have passed a proposal that would protect gun and ammunition dealers . Hallie was the daughter of Chad Scruggs, who is the lead pastor at Covenant Presbyterian Church, according to a statement from his former church in Dallas. A verified GoFundMe fundraiser to support the family of Mike Hill, The Covenant School custodian who was killed in Monday's shooting, has surpassed $150,000 in money raised, according to the website as of 6 p.m. Tuesday. "Our high school was really accepting of that.". Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. ", Nashville Mayor John Cooper thanked first responders and medical professionals and said his "heart goes out to the families of the victims." "Those first responding officers were the model response in how active shooter response should be. "The young people of Tennessee are making it very clear they are sick of waiting," the . Enrollment fluctuates between 195 and 210. "What detectives have said so far is there is possibly some resentment for having to go to that school. On a given day, slightly over 200students and 42 staff members are at the school, Aaron said. My mother-in-law is the front-desk angel, McDonald said. Officers shot and killed the attacker at the Covenant school, which is attached to the Covenant Presbyterian church in the Tennessee state capital. 'OUR COMMUNITY IS HEARTBROKEN':Covenant School community seeks prayer in wake of deadly mass shooting. "I was really impressed that with all that was going on, the danger, that somebody took control and said, 'Let's go, let's go, let's go,' and went in and just tried to end this situation,''Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake said. doris metropolitan recipes, what surgery did brayden have,