Police identify female former student, 28, as the shooter
Nashville Police announced on Monday they responded to a shooting at a private elementary school and preschool as officials confirmed three children and three adults died.
Officials identified the child victims asย Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, saying they are all aged 9.ย The adult victims were identifiedย Cynthia Peak, age 61; Katherine Koonce, age 60; and Mike Hill, age 61; accordingย to a postย on Twitter.
Police Chief John Drakeย toldย reporters that the shooter was identified as Audrey Hale and that โshe identified as transgender, yes,โ when asked about whether she had.ย โAt one point she was a student at that school,โ he added hours after the shooting. โBut unsure what year โฆ but thatโs what Iโve been told so far.โ
Social media profiles of the alleged shooter show that Hale used โhe/himโ pronouns. A LinkedIn profile said that Hale had a freelance illustration and graphic design business and had previously attended Nossi College of Art in Tennessee.
โWe now know that there are three students who were fatally wounded as well as three adults inside the school. We are working to identify those victims. Including the shooter, a total of seven persons were killed as a result of this morningโs incident at the school,โ police spokesman Don Aaron said. โThree students who were shot are deceased. Three staff members who were shot are deceased,โ he continued to say.
Initially, officials did โnot know who she is,โ Aaron told reporters at a press conference. Later, the Nashville Metro Police Department wrote on social media that the suspect was identified as a 28-year-old Nashville woman, but no name was provided.
โAt one point she was a student at that school,โ Nashville police Chief John Drake told reporters later on Monday. โThere was a vehicle nearby that gave us a clue to who she was.โ
The suspect had two rifles and a handgun, Aaron said. He did not provide more details about the weapons.
Byย Jack Phillips