Tag: Chief John Drake

Nashville Police Confirm Covenant School Shooting Investigation Remains Ongoing Despite Predicted July Finish

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale

The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) on Friday was unable to provide The Tennessee Star with an estimated time of completion for its investigation into the Covenant School attack, but spokesman Don Aaron stated the case “remains open and is largely in a documentation phase where the lead detective is writing his and the department’s actions, findings, etc.”

Police began investigating the attack on March 27, 2023, when Audrey Elizabeth Hale claimed the lives three 6-year-old students and three adult staff members at the Covenant School in Nashville.

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Nashville Police Replace Internal Affairs Director Months After Retired Officer’s Complaint Sparked Investigation

Tom Pappert
Kathy Morante, Nashville City Hall

The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) on Monday reportedly replaced the head of its internal affairs office in a decision that came months after retired Lieutenant Garet Davidson submitted a 61-page complaint naming the former official, prompting an investigation.

It was reported on Monday by Nashville Banner that Kathy Morante, the head of the MNPD Office of Professional Accountability since 2013, was replaced.

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FBI Says It Has No Record of ‘Legacy Token’ Documents After FOIA Request

Peter D'Abrosca

In response the a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) says it has no record of any documents containing the terms “legacy token” or “legacy tokens,” despite the fact that The Tennessee Star has such a document from the FBI in its possession. 

“Based on the information you provided, we conducted a main entity record search of the Central Records System (CRS) per our standard search policy,” the FBI said in response to the FOIA request. “However, we were unable to identify records subject to the FOIPA that are responsive to your request. Therefore, your request is being closed. If you have additional information pertaining to the subject of your request, please submit a new request providing the details, and we will conduct an additional search.”

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

Tom Pappert

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.

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

Tom Pappert

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.

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

Tom Pappert
Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital

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. 

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MNPD Review of Vanderbilt University Medical Center Records: Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Had ‘Thoughts of Killing Dad . . . Struggles with Mental Health. Recent Thoughts of Going into a School and Shooting a Bunch of People.’

Tom Pappert

The Tennessee Star has obtained a Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) internal document labeled “Vandy Psych” which appears to be notes taken by an MNPD officer tasked with reviewing documents obtained via a search warrant granted for Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital, part of Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), on June 1, 2023.

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FBI Declines to Confirm ‘Legacy Tokens’ Memo Sent to Nashville Police Which Raised Precedent for Destruction of Covenant Killer Writings

Tom Pappert

The FBI declined on Monday to confirm to The Tennessee Star the authenticity of a memo it sent to the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) that “strongly discourages” the release of “legacy tokens” left by those who commit devastating attacks like the Covenant School attack orchestrated by Audrey Elizabeth Hale.

The Star published the memo last week, revealing it was addressed to MNPD Chief John Drake and sent on May 11, 2023.

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FBI Memo on ‘Protection of Legacy Tokens’ Sent to Nashville Police in May 2023 Opposed Release of Covenant Killer Documents, Cited Destruction Precedent

Tom Pappert

The Tennessee Star has obtained the FBI memo sent to the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) on May 11, 2023 from a source familiar with the Covenant killer investigation.

The letterhead and heading used for the memo indicate it originated at the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group in Quantico, Virginia. The opening paragraphs reveal it was sent by the FBI’s Behavioral Threat Assessment Center (BTAC), the home of the FBI’s Behavorial Analysis Unit (BAU-1). The memo was not signed.

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Retired MNPD Lt. Garet Davidson Claims FBI Told Nashville Police Not to Release Documents from Covenant School Killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale Investigation, Pointed to Precedent for Document Destruction

Tom Pappert

A retired Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) lieutenant told The Michael Patrick Leahy Show on Tuesday that the FBI sent a memo to Police Chief John Drake in May of 2023, two months after Audrey Elizabeth Hale killed three students and three staff members at the Covenant School, instructing the department not to release certain materials from the Covenant School shooting investigation and instead pointed out to the MNPD the precedent for destroying such documents.

The information was divulged to Michael Patrick Leahy, the editor-in-chief of The Tennessee Star, by recently retired MNPD Lieutenant Garet Davidson, who filed the recent 61-page complaint against the department and made other claims about the status of the investigation of Covenant School shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale to 99.7 WTN radio host Brian Wilson.

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Metro Nashville Police Unable to Find Source of Covenant Killer Manifesto Leak, but Reveals How Photos Were Taken

Tom Pappert

Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) Chief John Drake said in an official announcement on Friday that the department had “exhausted” its investigative options to discover the identity of the law enforcement professional who leaked images of the manifesto written by Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale, leading to their publication.

Drake announced in the media release that his department “has exhausted all available investigative avenues” to identify the person who leaked the images, but offered new information about how the images were taken, and revealed that a former MNPD detective has opted against cooperating with his former employers’ investigation.

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Metro Nashville Police Department Confirms Deputy Chief, Currently Running for Political Office, Under Two Internal Investigations

Laura Baigert

Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) Deputy Chief Chris Taylor, who is currently running for political office, is under two separate internal investigations by the Office of Professional Accountability (OPA), the MNPD Public Affairs confirmed Thursday to The Tennessee Star.

The OPA is investigating a complaint received this year concerning Taylor wearing his uniform while off-duty in Sumner County as well as interaction with staff at the MNPD Training Academy, Public Affairs Director Don Aaron told The Star in an email.

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Metro Nashville Police Department Deputy Chief Running for Political Office Appears to Be in Violation of Department Policy, Wearing Uniform Off-Duty

Laura Baigert

A Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) Deputy Chief who is running for political office in his home of Sumner County, appears to be violating department policy by wearing his police uniform while off-duty.

MNPD Deputy Chief Chris Taylor, who as a resident of Sumner County is currently a member of the Sumner County Board of Commissioners, is running in the May 3 Republican primary for the office of Sumner County Mayor.

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Mental Health Clinicians to Join Metro Nashville Police on 911 Calls by June 28

Corinne Murdock

Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) announced Monday that mental health clinicians will join officers on 911 calls through a Co-Response Crisis Intervention Program starting June 28. The pilot program was reportedly modeled after the Support Team Assistance Response (STAR) pilot program in Denver, Colorado.

“The MNPD’s first ever Co-Response Crisis Intervention [Program] (officers teamed with clinicians) begins 6/28. 16 officers from the North and Hermitage Precincts today begin 40 hours of crisis intervention training alongside Mental Health Co-Op staff in preparation for the start,” wrote MNPD.

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Review Board Finds Metro Nashville Police’s 2019 Response to Nashville Bomber Was Inadequate

Corinne Murdock

An after-action review board found that the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) 2019 response to a report of the Nashville bomber was inadequate. They noted that the follow-up to the August 2019 incident had multiple issues: namely, lack of documentation and insufficient information gathered. However, the review board also asserted that its analysis doesn’t mean that the bombing was preventable.

The After-Action Review Board concludes that there is no way to know for sure if the suicide bombing on December 25, 2020 could have been prevented. Law enforcement followed protocols and procedures regarding the 8/21/19 incident, however deficiencies were identified in how the follow-up investigation was conducted. An after-action report, by its very nature, invites the examiners to employ hindsight in reaching their conclusions. But there is danger in that. One must not assume that because certain good practices were not followed or certain actions were not taken, the outcome would have necessarily been different had those proper steps been taken. All we can say for sure is that following the best practices and being diligent creates the best opportunity for a good result next time.

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Nashville Attorneys Offers Up $2.25 Million Settlement for Daniel Hambrick Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Corinne Murdock

Metro Nashville attorneys settled for $2.25 million with the parents of Daniel Hambrick in their wrongful death lawsuit. That settlement wouldn’t bring closure to the entirety of the ordeal, however. The settlement will not resolve a separate case concerning Andrew Delke, the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) officer who shot Hambrick. Delke still faces a first-degree murder charge.

By offering this settlement, Metro government clarified that neither they or Delke were admitting to any wrongdoing or liability. Metropolitan Director of Law Bob Cooper suggested that this settlement would help offer some closure for the community.

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Nashville Police Say There Was ‘No Evidence or Reasonable Suspicion’ of Anthony Warner Building Bomb Last Year

Corinne Murdock

Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) stated that last year’s investigation into the Nashville bomber yielded no evidence or suspicion of a crime. Chief John Drake revealed those details in a statement on Anthony Warner, the bomber linked to the Christmas Day explosion in downtown Nashville.

Drake explained that MNPD were called by an attorney to address a suicidal woman with two guns last August. The woman at the scene was Pamela Perry, Warner’s girlfriend at the time. She reported to police that Warner was making bombs in his RV trailer, and stated that both guns belonged to him. The attorney, Raymond Throckmorton III, reportedly represented both Warner and Perry.

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