Brian Gornick, Staff Writer
Victims (Clockwise from upper left): Katherine Koonce, Mike Hill, Cynthia Peak, Hallie Scruggs and Evelyn Dieckhaus. Photo//Covenant School and Covenant Presbyterian Church Facebook page via CNN.
As Nashville, Tennessee and the United States reel from The Covenant School shooting this past Monday that killed three children and three adults, more information has come out about the attacker and her motives.
Nashville police announced Monday after the shooting in a press conference that the shooter was female and that she was armed with “two assault-type rifles and a handgun,” according to Nashville Police’s Don Aaaron.
Nashville Police have now identified 28-year-old Audrey Hale, a former student of The Covenant School, as the shooter.
In released footage from both the school’s security cameras and responding officers' body cameras, Hale entered The Covenant School at 10:10 a.m. by shooting through a glass panel on an entrance door and then entering the school. 911 received the first calls around the shooting at 10:13 a.m..
Nashville Metro Police entered the school soon after, and in released body cam footage, encountered Hale on the second floor of the school. Officer Rex Engelbert is shown firing four quick shots at Hale, and as officers moved in, four more shots were fired at Hale by Officer Michael Callazo.
In a press interview Tuesday morning, Nashville Police Chief John Drake stated that Hale was under care for an emotional disorder and had legally bought seven firearms that she kept hidden at home, three of which were used in the shooting on Monday.
Audrey Hale, photo courtesy of ABC News.
Also in Drake’s press release, Hale’s parents were interviewed by police, and said they knew of one gun that Hale had purchased, but believed that to be the extent of her firearm ownership. They also told police that on the morning of the shooting, Hale left home with a red bag, and dismissed her parents' questions when they asked what was in the bag.
When police searched Hale’s home, they found four guns, as well as evidence that the shooting was premeditated.
“They found a lot of ammunition. This was clearly planned,” said Nashville Mayor John Cooper to CNN.
A motive at this time is unknown, yet police did find other maps that insinuated Hale had more targets in mind, including a local mall, as well as a written manifesto.
“There's quite a bit of writing to it. I have not read the whole manifesto. Our team and the FBI have been working on this,” said Aaron.