Nashville police ID school shooter, say incident was a targeted attack
Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake gives an update on the Covington school shooting on 'The Five.'
Nashville police identified the shooter who opened fire on Monday morning at The Covenant School as 28-year-old Audrey Hale, a transgender former student at the private Presbyterian school.
Three children and three adults were murdered in the shooting: Evelyn Dieckhaus, 9, Hallie Scruggs, 9, William Kinney, 9, Cynthia Peak, 61, Katherine Koonce, 60, and Mike Hill, 61.
Nashville police chief John Drake identified Hale as a transgender woman on Monday afternoon, but Hale listed "He/Him" pronouns on a LinkedIn profile.
Audrey Hale was identified by police as the gunman who opened fire at the Covenant School on Monday morning, killing six people.
Metro Nashville Police Department release a video of 28-year-old Audrey Elizabeth Hale carrying out a shooting at Covenant school on March 27, 2023. (Metro Nashville Police Department)
Hale allegedly shot through a locked door around 10:13 a.m. to gain entry to the school while armed with two rifles and a handgun, then climbed the stairs to the second floor and opened fire.
Two Nashville police officers entered the school and went to the sounds of gunfire, where they fatally shot Hale around 10:27 a.m., according to police.
Drake said that a nearby vehicle gave investigators clues to the shooter's identity.
NASHVILLE SCHOOL SHOOTING: 6 KILLED INCLUDING 3 STUDENTS, SHOOTER DEAD
Hale's home address is about three miles away from the Covenant School, according to public records. The FBI, ATF, and local police cordoned off that home with crime scene tape on Monday afternoon.
Investigators found a "manifesto" and other writings that they are looking into as they search for a motive.
Hand drawn maps of the school with detailed entry points were also located at the residence.
A LinkedIn profile and personal website that appear to be affiliated with Hale describe her as a graphic designer who creates logos for businesses.
She graduated from Nossi College of Art & Design with a degree in illustration and graphic design last year, the school confirmed.
"While at our school, she was a talented artist and a good student," Nossi College of Art & Design President Cyrus Vatandoost told Fox News Digital in a statement. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family, to the victims and their families and to our city."
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The Covenant School, which was founded in 2001, caters to pre-school through 6th grade students and is located southwest of downtown in Nashville's Green Hills neighborhood. It wasn't immediately clear what years Hale attended the school.
It's the latest tragedy perpetrated at an elementary school in the U.S. by a former student.
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In May 2022, an 18-year-old man opened fire at his former grade school, Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, killing 19 students and two teachers.
A decade before that in December 2012, a 20-year-old man killed 20 children and six adult staff members at his former elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
Fox News Digital's Louis Casiano and Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
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