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Tennessee Judge Rules Not One Page of Covenant Killer Writings Shall be Released, Cites Dubious Copyright Claims of Intervenors

Tennessee Judge Rules Not One Page of Covenant Killer Writings Shall be Released, Cites Dubious Copyright Claims of Intervenors

Jul 5, 20244 min read
Tennessee Chancery Court Judge I’Ashea L. Myles ruled in a decision released at 11:58 pm on Thursday that none of the writings left by Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale shall be released to the multiple parties who sued Metro Nashville to secure their release, citing the copyright claims of the parents she earlier allowed to intervene in the lawsuit.
Columbine Shooters

Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Told Unknown Physician She ‘Felt Close’ to Columbine Massacre, Nashville Police Revealed in 2023 Recording

Jul 4, 20245 min read
Police investigators told the parents of Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale their daughter “felt close” to those who perpetrated the Columbine High School attack in 1999 and created her own version of the Columbine Tapes. The investigators told the killer’s parents, Ronald Hale and Norma Hale, that their daughter divulged the information to an unknown physician, according to the transcript of a July 12, 2023, interview The Tennessee Star obtained last month.
Audrey Hale

Covenant School Killer Had Violent Outburst Prior to Attack Called Emotional ‘Leakage’ by Police During Interview with Parents

Jul 3, 20245 min read
After the parents of Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale described a violent outburst during a police interview, a Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) investigator referred to the incident as “leakage” of “anger,” in a possible reference to the “leakage of intent” researchers say is commonly displayed by mass killers. The Tennessee Star confirmed last month it obtained the transcript of an MNPD interview with Ronald and Norma Hale, the parents of Audrey Hale, which was recorded on July 12, 2023.
Covenant School Shooter Hale

Covenant School Killer Audrey Hale Was Diagnosed with Five Mental Disorders, Parents Told Nashville Police

Jul 2, 20244 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale received medical diagnoses for five mental disorders, her parents Ronald and Norma Hale told Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) investigators on July 12, 2023, according to a transcript of the interview obtained by The Tennessee Star from a source familiar with the investigation. Ronald and Norma Hale, with the assistance of their attorney, provided the list of mental disorders after MNPD investigators questioned whether Audrey Hale was formally diagnosed with autism.
Audrey Hale

Mother of Covenant Killer Told Police She Slept in Sleeping Bag to Block Killer’s Bedroom After Prozac Caused Suicidal Thoughts

Jul 2, 20244 min read
The mother of Covenant School shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale told police investigators her daughter first experienced suicidal thoughts when prescribed the antidepressant Prozac as a high school student, according to a transcript of the interview obtained by The Tennessee Star from a source familiar with the investigation. Last month, The Star reported that police documents confirmed Audrey Hale was a 22-year mental health patient at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). Another portion of the transcript of the police interview with Ronald and Norma Hale revealed their daughter avoided inpatient commitment during three separate mental crises.
Audrey Elizabeth Hale

Covenant School Killer Audrey Hale Avoided Commitment Three Times During Mental Health Crises

Jul 1, 20245 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale avoided commitment on three separate occasions, her parents told Metro Nashville Police Department investigators in a June 12, 2023 interview, according to a transcript obtained by The Tennessee Star from a source familiar with the investigation. The transcript reveals Ronald and Norma Hale told investigators doctors wanted to commit her daughter for inpatient treatment over an eating disorder, and that Audrey Hale was twice considered for inpatient commitment after she expressed suicidal ideation to mental health professionals.
Audrey Elizabeth Hale

Covenant School Killer Audrey Hale Diagnosed with Anxiety Disorder Around 2011, Parents Told Police

Jul 1, 20244 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder around 2011, her parents told Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) investigators in a June 12, 2023 interview, according to a transcript obtained by The Tennessee Star from a source familiar with the investigation. The Star previously reported that police documents revealed Audrey Hale to be a 22-year mental health patient at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and The Star reported on Sunday that Hale’s parents, Ronald and Norma Hale, first learned of their daughter’s purported autism diagnosis from a speech pathologist in the summer of 2001.
Audrey Elizabeth Hale

Covenant School Killer Audrey Hale Began ‘Going Through Testing’ for Mental Health in Summer of 2001, Parents Told Police

Jun 30, 20245 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale began receiving treatment from a speech pathologist in September 2001, which is when a mental health professional first indicated to the killer’s parents that Audrey Hale suffered from autism, according to a transcript of the July 12, 2023 police interview with Ronald and Norma Hale obtained by The Tennessee Star from a source close to the investigation. The Star previously published police documents which established Hale was a 22-year mental health patient at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) prior to her March 27, 2023 attack on the Covenant School, when she claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adult staff members before she was heroically shot by two responding police officers.
Journal Lacks Evidence for Early Police Claim Audrey Hale Targeted Covenant over ‘Resentment’ for Time at School

Journal Lacks Evidence for Early Police Claim Audrey Hale Targeted Covenant over ‘Resentment’ for Time at School

Jun 28, 20244 min read
The journal police recovered from the vehicle Audrey Elizabeth Hale drove to the Covenant School, where she claimed the lives of six on March 27, 2023, does not contain evidence Hale harbored “resentment” the five years she spent as a student at the school. The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained approximately 80 pages of Hale’s writings, in the form of Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) photos, from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation.
Nashville Police Deny Chief Acknowledged Vanderbilt University Medical Center Staff Failed Duty to Warn Potential Victims of Covenant Killer Audrey Hale

Nashville Police Deny Chief Acknowledged Vanderbilt University Medical Center Staff Failed Duty to Warn Potential Victims of Covenant Killer Audrey Hale

Jun 27, 20244 min read
The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department (MNPD) on Wednesday denied Chief John Drake privately acknowledged staff at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) knew Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale told mental health professionals she fantasized about killing her father and committing a mass shooting at a school, but failed to warn potential victims in violation of Tennessee Code 33-3-206, as was alleged by a source familiar with the investigation to The Tennessee Star on June 19. MNPD Public Affairs director Don Aaron contacted The Star on Wednesday via email to state, “Chief Drake confirms that he DID NOT acknowledge what” The Star first reported in its June 19 article.
Mary Pawlikowski

Outgoing Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital President Created Psychiatric Crisis Evaluation Process Before Covenant Killer Audrey Hale was Referred for Commitment

Jun 27, 20244 min read
The outgoing president of Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital (VPH), part of Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), combined the hospital’s services to patients in psychiatric crisis in 2016, three years before the Covenant School killer was referred to VPH for commitment and instead enrolled in an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP). The Tennessee Star reported on June 7 that Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) investigators learned within hours of Hale’s March 27, 2023 attack on the Covenant School, which claimed the lives of six, that the killer was a 22-year mental health patient of VUMC.
Judge I'Ashea L. Myles

Commentary: Court Threatens First Amendment Rights of Tennessee Star After Release of Covenant School Shooting Documents

Jun 27, 20247 min read
The editor-in-chief and publisher of The Tennessee Star was ordered to appear in court last week and threatened with charges of contempt after his newspaper reported on an anonymously leaked collection of documents authored by Nashville mass shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale. Michael Patrick Leahy was joined by his attorneys in court on Monday for a “show-cause hearing,” where the journalist was asked by Chancery Court Judge I’Ashea Myles to demonstrate why his outlet’s reporting does not subject him to contempt proceedings and sanctions. On March 27, 2023, Hale (born Audrey Elizabeth Hale) entered the Covenant School armed with three semiautomatic guns and murdered six people, including three 9-year-old children. Hale, who was eventually shot and killed by police in the school, was a transgender man and former student at Covenant who harbored extremist sentiments on race, gender, and politics. The massacre remains the deadliest mass shooting in Tennessee history.
Audrey Hale

Audrey Hale Wrote Entry Titled ‘For Media’ in Journal Recovered by Police After Covenant School Attack

Jun 26, 20243 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale wrote in the journal police recovered from her vehicle an entry that appears to include instructions for the media about how to refer to the killer. The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained about 80 pages of Hale’s writings from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation.
Gun Range

Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Wrote in Journal About Training with Firearm She Purchased with Pell Grant, Concealed in Family Home

Jun 25, 20243 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale wrote in the journal police recovered from her vehicle about training at a Nashville gun range with one of the weapons she purchased using federal Pell Grant funds and concealed in her family home. The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained Hale’s journal and a tranche of police documents from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation, and on June 6, including a journal entry in which Hale claimed to witness an accidental firearm injury while training at a Nashville gun range just two days prior to her devastating March 27, 2023 attack.
Therapist

Vanderbilt University Medical Center Started Center to Assist with Mental Health ‘Intervention’ One Day After Covenant School Attack

Jun 25, 20244 min read
Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) and Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital announced the creation of its Behavioral Health Clinical Services Center (CSC) on March 28, 2023, just one day after Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale committed her attack that claimed the lives of six, including three children. The Tennessee Star confirmed it obtained a portion of police documents from the Covenant case earlier this month, including documents that show Hale was a 22-year mental health patient at VUMC who began receiving treatment in 2001 when she was just six years old.
Audrey Hale

Journal Recovered by Police Reveals How Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Spent Final Months Before Attack

Jun 25, 202411 min read
The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained the journal recovered by the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) from the vehicle of Audrey Elizabeth Hale after her devastating attack on the Covenant School claimed the lives of three 9-year-old children and three adults. Apparently started by Hale in January 2023, the journal reveals how the killer spent her final months before she was slain by heroic police officers responding to the Covenant School on March 27, 2023.
Audrey Hale with stuffed animals (composite image)

Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Bought Accessories for Stuffed Animals After Detailing Gender Fantasies in ‘My Imaginary Penis’ Journal Entry

Jun 25, 20243 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale purchased a pair of “boots” for her one of her stuffed animals after she used them to simulate heterosexual intercourse, according to an entry titled “My Imaginary Penis” from the journal police recovered from the vehicle she drove to the Covenant School, where she committed her devastating March 27, 2023 attack that claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults. The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained about 80 pages of Hale’s writings from a source close to the Covenant investigation, and on June 6, published details about one entry Hale titled “My Imaginary Penis.”
Audrey Elizabeth-hale

Covenant School Killer Audrey Hale Revealed Alleged Autism Diagnosis, ‘Bi-Polar’ Accusations, Struggles with Eating in Recovered Journal

Jun 24, 20245 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale wrote in the journal police recovered from her vehicle about her purported autism diagnosis, but also wrote that she was accused of being “bi-polar,” and divulged she struggled with eating and sleeping regularly. The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained about 80 pages of Hale’s writings from a source close to the Covenant investigation, and has now published more than 40 articles that provide new details regarding the case and insight into Hale’s writings.
Tanmay Mathur

Vanderbilt University Medical Center Announces New Vice President of Psychiatric Hospital amid Covenant Killer Revelations

Jun 24, 20244 min read
Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) announced on Monday a new vice president to lead the Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital, where The Tennessee Star reported earlier this month that Covenant School shooter was a 22-year mental health patient, having begun receiving treatment as a six-year-old in 2001. A March 14 news release by VUMC announced current Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital president Mary Pawlikowski planned to “retire at the end of the fiscal year,” placing her retirement date on September 30.
Tricia Herzfeld

More Trans Patients Join Lawsuit Against Vanderbilt University Medical Center over Data Given to Tennessee Attorney General

Jun 24, 20244 min read
More transgender patients have reportedly joined the class action suit against Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) after it alerted patients their medical records were given to Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti as part of an investigation into inflated billing practices. According to attorney Tricia Herzfeld, who revealed new details about the legal action to WKRN on Thursday, there are now two class action lawsuits against VUMC.
Dr. Alexander Sin

Vanderbilt University Medical Center Doctor Published Article Pushing Sports for Trans Kids Six Months After Covenant School Killing

Jun 24, 20245 min read
A medical doctor working for Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) published an article in September 2023 that claimed children who identify as transgender benefit when competing in sports with competitors of their preferred gender. The September 18, 2023 article was published less than six months after Audrey Elizabeth Hale, a biological female who identified as a transgender male, committed her devastating March 27 attack on the Covenant School which claimed the lives of three 9-year-old children and three adult staff members.
Tom Pappert

Reporter Tom Pappert: Vanderbilt University Medical Center Appears to an Incubator for Teens with Mental Health Problems to Turn into Adults with Gender Identity Issues

Jun 23, 20244 min read
Tom Pappert, lead reporter at The Tennessee Star, said it “makes sense” how Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) appears to have some sort of role in introducing teenagers and children with mental health problems to transgenderism for further treatment.
Shayne Sebold Taylor

Vanderbilt University Medical Center Doctor Called Transgender Surgery ‘Big Money’ Year Before Covenant Killer Audrey Hale was Referred for Commitment

Jun 21, 20244 min read
Born a biological female, Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale began identifying as a transgender man and using the name Aiden prior to her devastating attack which claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults on March 27, 2023. Police documents published by The Tennessee Star determined Hale was a 22-year mental health patient of Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), the home of a controversial transgender program that is reportedly considered “big money” for the hospital.
Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital

Father Says His Teenage Daughter ‘Began Mentioning a Trans Lifestyle and Adopted a Male Name’ While Being Treated at Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital

Jun 21, 20245 min read
The distraught father of a teenage daughter contacted The Tennessee Star on Thursday and expressed his concern about the treatment his daughter has been receiving at Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital, part of Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). The Star received the email after it published the notes taken by a Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) investigator the department obtained at least 75 pages of documents from VUMC following a June 1, 2023 search warrant. 
Audrey Hale

Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Wrote ‘Everything Hurts’ in Journal While Prescribed Anxiety Drug Capable of Causing Musculoskeletal Pain

Jun 20, 20246 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale wrote repeatedly about experiencing pain, using the phrase “everything hurts” in at least 10 entries in the journal recovered from her vehicle after her devastating attack claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three staff members. The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained about 80 pages of Hale’s writings from a source close to the Covenant investigation, which reveal she repeatedly wrote about pain, and police photographs obtained by The Star reveal Hale was prescribed an anti-anxiety medication that can cause musculoskeletal pain.
Tom Pappert MPL

Reporter Tom Pappert: Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s Connection to Covenant Killer Is the Most Significant Revelation of Entire Case

Jun 20, 20244 min read
Tom Pappert, lead reporter at The Tennessee Star, said he believes Vanderbilt University Medical Center’s (VUMC) connection to Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer, is the “biggest part” of the unraveling story. On June 7, The Star was the first to report that Hale was a 22-year patient of VUMC from 2001 until the time of the horrific school shooting on March 27, 2023.
Audrey Hale VUMC

Vanderbilt University Medical Center Responds Following Revelation Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Expressed Fantasies of Killing Father, Shooting School

Jun 20, 20244 min read
The Tennessee Star received a response from Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) regarding its apparent treatment of Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale, which was revealed in a number of Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) documents obtained by The Star. After The Star obtained a police summary describing 75 pages of notes retrieved from VUMC following a June 1, 2023 search warrant for information related to Hale’s treatment, and asked VUMC president and CEO Jeff Balser for comment, a spokesman said he was unable to confirm Hale’s treatment due to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) Act of 1996.
Audrey Hale

MNPD Notes About Treatment Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Received at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Tied by Metadata to Police Investigator Who Secured Search Warrant

Jun 20, 20244 min read
The Tennessee Star retrieved metadata from the Microsoft Word document titled “Vandy Psych,” which contains notes summarizing 75 pages of documents retrieved from Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) following a June 1, 2023 search warrant for materials related to its treatment of Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale. The Star reported it obtained the document from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation on Wednesday, when its contents were published alongside the revelation a source claimed Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) Chief John Drake acknowledged VUMC failed its duty to warn Hale’s intended victims after she expressed fantasies of killing her father and enacting a school shooting.
Audrey Hale

Journal May Support Claim Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Engaged in ‘Stalkerish’ Behavior with Former Middle School Basketball Team

Jun 19, 20246 min read
Multiple entries within the journal police recovered from the vehicle driven by Audrey Elizabeth Hale to the Covenant School on March 27, 2023, when she claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adult staff members, appear to corroborate previous reporting that the killer became “obsessed” with her former middle school basketball teammates.  The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained about 80 pages of Hale’s writings from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation, and has since reported extensively about entries which refer to two of Hale’s former teammates on the Isaiah T. Creswell Middle School basketball team.
Audrey Hale Therapist

Covenant School Killer Audrey Hale Wrote About Her Therapist in Journal, Revealed Concerns over Anxiety, Autism, and Bipolar Disorder

Jun 19, 20246 min read
Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale wrote several entries in the journal police recovered from her vehicle that referenced her mental health, including an entry about her therapist, multiple references to autism, anxiety, and one entry that mentions bipolar disorder. The Tennessee Star confirmed on June 5 it obtained about 80 pages of Hale’s writings from a source familiar with the police investigation into her March 27, 2023 attack which claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adult staff members at the Covenant School.