The alleged author of the shooting that this Monday killed three children and three adults at a school in Nashville, in the US state of Tennessee, was a former student of that school and planned the attack, police authorities announced.
The woman, a native of Nashville, died Monday in a confrontation with police inside The Covenant School, a private Christian school founded in 2001 and serving about 200 students, from preschool to sixth grade.
At a press conference, Nashville Police Chief John Drake revealed that Audrey Hale, 28, would have premeditated the shooting, after authorities found plans of the school where she lived in the house where she lived with her parents. They marked in detail the entrances to the College and the location of the security cameras.
Authorities also found a “manifesto” and writings that are being analyzed.
The woman, who was described by authorities as transgender, had no criminal record and managed to enter the school through one of the side doors, carrying two semi-automatic weapons and at least one pistol.
Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said at an earlier news conference that the police response was “quick” and that, after gaining access to the first floor of the school, officers heard gunshots coming from the second floor and They decided to go upstairs.
Already on the second floor they found a young woman who was shooting and two police officers ended up opening fire on her.
Several students were seen leaving the school, surrounded by police cars, towards a nearby church to meet their parents.
The deadly shooting comes as communities across the country reel from a wave of school violence, including last year’s shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas; or a shooting last week in Denver that injured two administrators.
Don Aaron explained that on a typical day there are around 209 students at the school, which employs more than 40 staff.
This is already the 128th mass shooting in the United States since the beginning of the year, according to data from the File of Gun Violence, which defines a mass shooting when at least four people are shot, excluding the shooter.
Home to an estimated 400 million firearms in circulation, the United States is regularly plagued by deadly shootings, including in schools.
Since the beginning of 2023, there have been at least 30 firearms incidents in schools in the United States, which have left eight dead and 23 injured, according to data from the organization Everytown for Gun Safety.
Source: TSF
