Tag: Covenant Presbyterian School

Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell Orders Metro Legal to Investigate How Covenant Killer Documents Were Released

Tom Pappert

Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell ordered an investigation from Metro Legal on Monday to determine how the photos of the manifesto written by The Covenant Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale, which were authenticated by The Tennessee Star, were leaked to conservative comedian and pundit Steven Crowder.

O’Connell announced the investigation in a statement to News Channel 5, telling the outlet he directed Metro Law Director Wally Dietz “to initiate an investigation into how these images could have been released.” At press time the Metro Nashville Police Department has acknowledged the documents, but has refused to comment on their authenticity or how Crowder may have obtained them.

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Sources Confirm Docs Leaked by Crowder Are Authentic Covenant Killer Writings, MNPD Investigating

Tom Pappert

Sources in the Tennessee General Assembly who were allowed to view the Covenant Killer Manifesto by the Metro Nashville Police Department have confirmed to The Tennessee Star that the documents released by Steven Crowder on Monday morning, which he purports to be part of Covenant killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale’s manifesto, are indeed part of the documents obtained by MNPD during their investigation, and were authentically written by Hale.

The independent confirmation of the manifesto comes after MNPD said it “has no idea” what the documents. The Star contacted MNPD again to confirm the documents are Hale’s original writings, but a spokesperson for the department said she did not know whether the documents were authentic.

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Metro Nashville Police Department ‘Has No Idea’ About Document Steven Crowder Purports to Be Covenant Killer Manifesto

Tom Pappert

A spokesperson for the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) told The Tennessee Star they have “no idea” about the document obtained by Steven Crowder and released on Monday, which he purports to be the actual manifesto of Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale.

They did not specifically address the authenticity of the purported document.

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BREAKING: First Page of Alleged Hale Manifesto Leaked

Peter D'Abrosca

The alleged first page of The Covenant School shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale’s now-infamous manifesto, which has been hidden from the public since the mass killing in March, was leaked to the public Monday. 

Conservative podcaster Steven Crowder said early Monday morning that he would release the document on his daily show, “Louder With Crowder” at 10 a.m. The contents of the partial manifesto surfaced online shortly before the show aired. 

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Attorney for Parents in Covenant School Killer Records Lawsuit Claims Release of Manifesto Will Lead to Suicides

M.D. Kittle

A three-judge appeals court panel on Monday heard oral arguments in a First Amendment lawsuit seeking the release of the manifesto and related writings of the Covenant School killer.

The judges will determine whether a lower court erred in allowing Nashville’s Covenant Presbyterian Church, its elementary school and parents of students there to intervene in the lawsuit, brought by the parent company of The Tennessee Star, the Tennessee Firearms Association, The Tennessean, and others.

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Tennessee Appeals Court to Hear Oral Arguments in Covenant Killer Records Case

M.D. Kittle

The Tennessee Court of Appeals is scheduled to hear oral arguments Monday afternoon in The Tennessee Star’s lawsuit demanding the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County release the Covenant School killer’s manifesto and related records.

The court is weighing whether to overturn Davidson County Judge I’Ashea Myles’ ruling to allow Covenant Presbyterian School parents, staff and others to intervene in the lawsuit and argue why the manifesto should remain locked away from the public.

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State Rep. Justin Jones Files Lawsuit Against Speaker Cameron Sexton Claiming Violation of Constitutional Rights

Peter D'Abrosca

A Democrat member of the Tennessee House of Representatives has filed a lawsuit in the United States District Court in the District of Tennessee Nashville Division claiming that House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R-Crossville) violated his constitutional rights when he was expelled from the General Assembly earlier this year. 

“Today my attorneys filed a federal lawsuit to hold Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton responsible for his unconstitutional and discriminatory actions. The people of District 52 deserve to have their voices heard without the threat of undemocratic silencing and retaliation,” said State Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) on X, formerly known as Twitter, attaching a photo of the lawsuit. 

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Democrat U.S. Senate Hopeful Once Said North Korea Has More Democracy than Tennessee

Peter D'Abrosca

A state representative who announced her run for U.S. Senate Tuesday once told a news outlet that North Korea was more democratic than the state of Tennessee.

“I feel like North Korea has more democracy than we do in the state of Tennessee, and it’s terrifying to me that we’re in this march to fascism,” State Representative Gloria Johnson (D-Knoxville) told Mother Jones in April. “And it seems like the Tennessee supermajority is leading the charge.”

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FBI Cites ‘Ongoing Criminal Investigation’ in Refusing to Release Hunter Biden Gun Records, Just as the Agency Is Doing in The Star News Network FOIA Lawsuit

M.D. Kittle

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is citing an “ongoing criminal investigation” in refusing to turn over records on Hunter Biden’s trashed gun.

It’s the same suspect blocking argument the FBI is trying to use in The Star News Network’s lawsuit demanding the agency turn over the Covenant School killer’s manifesto in Nashville.

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Tennessee Star Files Records Request for Information on ‘Handwritten Words, Drawings, and Numbers’ Found on Covenant Killer’s Clothes

M.D. Kittle

The Tennessee Star filed a public records request seeking information related to “handwritten words, drawings, and numbers” found on the clothing of Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer, at the time of the mass shootings.

Michael Patrick Leahy, Tennessee citizen and CEO of Star News Digital Media, Inc., parent company of The Tennessee Star, filed the records request Thursday morning with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department. MNPD officials sent an automatic reply acknowledging receipt of the request.

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Vivek Ramaswamy Holds Press Conference in Nashville, Calls on Officials to Release Manifesto of Covenant Killer

Tennessee Star Staff

GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy held a press conference at the Davidson County Courthouse on Wednesday to call for releasing the Covenant School shooter’s manifesto.

“I’m here as a father and as an American. We can’t fix the past, but we can prevent tragedies in the future, and the only way to do it is to learn from those mistakes of the past,” Ramaswamy said. “When an airplane crashes, we recover the black box for a reason – we never want to make that same mistake twice. We have a tradition in this country as law enforcement to do the same thing when there’s a mass shooting…We have to learn from tragedy to prevent it in the future.”

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Nashville Christian School Shooter Had Handwritten Notes on Clothes, Autopsy Shows

Just the News

Nashville Christian shooter Audrey Hale had handwritten words, numbers and drawings covering the clothing she wore as she killed six people at her former school in March, an autopsy report states.

Hale, a 28-year-old biological woman who identified as a transgender man, also had a red pocket knife monogrammed with her chosen name of Aiden, according to the Davidson County Medical Examiner’s report, published Wednesday by Fox News.

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Nashville Covenant School Parents Push for New Gun Laws

The Center Square

Families from Nashville’s Covenant School have begun a pair of nonprofits and are pushing Tennessee for gun prevention laws such as expanded background checks, secure storage and red flag laws heading into August’s expected special session of the Tennessee Legislature.

A shooter killed three students and three employees at Covenant School earlier this year. Family members from the school started Covenant Families for a Brighter Tomorrow and the legislative advocacy nonprofit Covenant Families Action Fund.

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MNPD Not Opposed to Release of Redacted Covenant Killer Manifesto Sought in Star News Network’s Lawsuit Against FBI

M.D. Kittle
Covenant School Shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale

While the Federal Bureau of Investigation is fighting any release of the Covenant killer’s manifesto in federal court, an official with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department says the local law enforcement agency would not object to a redacted release of some of the documents.

The problem could be just how law enforcement officials define “redactions.” 

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FBI Doubles Down on ‘Ongoing Investigation’ Claim in Response to Star News Network’s Lawsuit over Covenant Killer’s Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

The Federal Bureau of Investigation is doubling down on its insistence that an “ongoing” criminal investigation prevents the agency from releasing Covenant Presbyterian School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale’s manifesto, according to a response filed this week in federal court.

Star News Digital Media Inc., parent company of The Star News Network and The Tennessee Star, filed a federal lawsuit in May demanding the FBI turn over Hale’s manifesto and related writings.

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Court Orders Expedited Appeal in Covenant Killer Manifesto Lawsuit, Delays Show Cause Hearing

M.D. Kittle

The Tennessee Court of Appeals in Nashville has agreed to expedite an appeal that will determine who is allowed to intervene in a lawsuit seeking the release of the Covenant School killer’s manifesto — a move that will push a July 12 show cause hearing into August. 

“Until the appeal regarding the intervention is resolved, there is no way to know who the parties in the underlying action will be to participate in the show cause hearing,” the court wrote. “Without a stay of the trial court proceedings, this appeal would be rendered moot or the parties may be forced to conduct a new show cause hearing depending on the results of the appeal.” 

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Former Covenant Presbyterian Church Pastor Grieves, Prays for Church He Served for 25 Years

M.D. Kittle

Pastor Jim Bachmann remembers the early, intimate days of the new Covenant Presbyterian Church in the early 1990s. A few dozen souls with a love of Christ and a thirst to grow in faith gathering at a small venue.

That little congregation has grown into a thriving, evangelical church of some 1,400 parishioners in the southern hills of Nashville since Bachmann took the lead preacher post in 1991. He served as pastor until 2016.

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Parents of Children Murdered in Covenant School Mass Shooting Weigh in on Records Lawsuit, Blast Tennessee Star and Others for Seeking Covenant Killer Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

Parents of two of the children murdered in the Covenant School massacre are joining others in asking Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles to keep the Covenant killer’s manifesto and related documents locked from public view. 

The mother of William Kinney and the parents of Evelyn Dieckhaus, two of three 9-year-olds fatally shot in the March 27 mass shootings, issued declaration letters to the court detailing the pain they’ve suffered and lambasting the news outlets and other organizations suing to have the records released.

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Commentary: Nashville Forensic Files

Admin

On March 27, in the run-up to “Trans Day of Vengeance,” Audrey Hale murdered six people at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee. Nearly three months later, Hale’s manifesto is still under wraps but autopsies enable the youngest victims to testify. 

The nine-year-old Hallie Scruggs, daughter of Covenant Presbyterian pastor Chad Scruggs, sustained an “indeterminate range gunshot wound of the head,” that caused injuries to the scalp, left temporal bone, and left temporal lobe of the brain. Hale also targeted Scruggs with an “indeterminate range gunshot wound of the pelvis,” entering at the left lower abdomen and causing injuries to the left femoral artery, vein and soft tissue. 

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Tennessee Republican House Whip Says He Told Governor He Won’t Support Red Flag Laws

Peter D'Abrosca

Tennessee’s House Majority Whip Johnny Garrett (R-Goodlettsville) told The Tennessee Star Thursday that he has spoken directly to Gov. Bill Lee (R) and that he will not be supporting Lee’s agenda to implement red flag laws during the upcoming special session of the General Assembly. 

“There is no red flag proposal from Gov. Lee to consider as our caucus will not support the destruction of our citizens’ constitutional rights,” said Garrett. “I have been in contact with the governor and have expressed the desire to address mental illness through treatment and resources for those who may be a threat to themselves and others. These conversations will continue, and we’ll determine the best ways we can help these individuals in crisis while improving public safety in communities across our state.”

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Threats of Copyright Infringement Lawsuits over Release of Covenant Killer’s Manifesto Probably Wouldn’t Hold Up in Court, Open Government Advocate Says

M.D. Kittle

While the Covenant School killer’s parents consider their daughter’s deadly manifesto “intellectual property” and suggest anyone who publishes the documents could face legal damages, records experts say the threat is more legal posturing in a nationally watched public records lawsuit. 

But the latest legal twist in the court battle over Audrey Elizabeth Hale’s journals, written notes, memoirs and related writings is an attempt to take a “wrecking ball” to Tennessee’s public records law, one open government expert told The Tennessee Star. 

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Federal Judge: FBI Must Respond by July 3 in The Star News Network Lawsuit Demanding Agency Release Covenant Killer Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

A federal judge has given the Federal Bureau of Investigation until July 3 to respond to The Star News Network’s lawsuit demanding the agency turn over the manifesto and related records of Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer.

The FBI had sought to delay the proceedings by another two weeks or a full month.

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Private Schools Seek to Argue Against Release of Records in Covenant Killer Manifesto Lawsuit

M.D. Kittle

Four Nashville private schools are seeking entry into a nationally watched public records lawsuit that demands the release of the Covenant School killer’s manifesto and related documents. 

Attorneys for Franklin Road Academy, Montgomery Bell Academy, Oak Hill School, and St. Paul Christian Academy filed a motion on Monday asking Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles for permission to file an amicus — friend of the court  — brief in the lawsuit. 

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TN Faith & Freedom Coalition Calls on Gov. Lee to Cancel Special Session on Gun Control ‘In the Interest of Public Safety’ Due to Danger from Far Left Activists

Michael Patrick Leahy

The Tennessee Faith & Freedom Coalition (TNFFC) called on Gov. Bill Lee (R-TN) Monday to cancel his proposed August 21 special session of the Tennessee General Assembly.

“We are writing you because you have made it clear that you are planning to use your authority to officially call an ill-advised special session of the Tennessee General Assembly on August 21st to address gun issues in the aftermath of the Covenant School shooting tragedy, a heinous and despicable act committed by a mentally ill individual who claimed to be on the transgender spectrum,” the TNFFC said in a letter sent to the governor. A copy of the letter was also sent to all members of the Tennessee General Assembly.

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Attorney for Parents of Covenant Killer Notifies Court They Intend to Transfer Ownership of Manifesto to Children of Covenant School

M.D. Kittle

In a new twist in the legal battle over the release of the Covenant School killer’s manifesto, the parents of Audrey Elizabeth Hale are asking the court to give them assigning rights so that they may turn the deadly records over to the children of the school. 

Attorneys for Star News Digital Media, parent company of The Tennessee Star, and the other plaintiffs suing the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department to release the records related to the March 27 mass shootings at Covenant Presbyterian School, were in court Thursday arguing against multiple parties intervening in the lawsuit. 

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Court Filing: The Tennessee Star and Others Argue Metro Nashville Has No Case in Denying Release of Covenant Killer’s Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

In a new court filing, attorneys for Star News Digital Media, parent company of The Tennessee Star, argue that the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davison County and intervenors in a public records lawsuit have no right to keep the Covenant School killer’s manifesto and related records from the public.

The memorandum of law, filed with Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles, asserts the Metro Nashville Police Department cannot “play ‘hide the ball’ with the reason for denial and come in later, raising wholly new and unrelated denial reasons.”

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Court Filing Explains Why Covenant School Parents Don’t Want Killer’s Manifesto Released

M.D. Kittle

Asking the court to “shield” Covenant Presbyterian School students from a “lifetime of abuse and harassment by the shooter from beyond the grave,” a new court filing lays out why parents of the children don’t want the Covenant killer’s manifesto and other writings made public. 

Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles last week ruled that the Covenant Presbyterian Church, its private elementary school and the parents of the schoolchildren may intervene in a lawsuit seeking the manifesto and related writings of mass shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale. 

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The Tennessee Star Appeals Judge’s Decision Allowing School and Parents to Intervene in Covenant Killer Manifesto Lawsuit

M.D. Kittle

The Tennessee Star and other plaintiffs in a closely watched public records lawsuit are appealing Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles’ decision last week to allow the Covenant Presbyterian Church, the school and parents of students to intervene in the case. 

Filed in the Tennessee Court of Appeals-Middle Section, the appeal could soon be consolidated with those of the other plaintiffs in the case — The Tennessean with State Senator Todd Gardenhire (R-Chattanooga), the Tennessee Firearms Association, and the National Police Association with private investigator Clata Renee Brewer — should the court grant it. 

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Nashville City Council to Hold Gun Violence Hearings in the Wake of Covenant School Massacre

M.D. Kittle

More than two months after 28-year-old Audrey Elizabeth Hale shot and killed three children and three staff members at the Covenant Presbyterian School, Nashville’s Metropolitan Council is planning to hold hearings on gun violence as a “public health issue.” 

The Public Health and Safety Committee will conduct the first special meeting on gun safety, co-hosted with Education Committee Chair Zulfat Suara, on June 14, from 4 p.m. to 5:30 pm.

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Legal Battle Rages Between Victims’ Rights and The Public’s Right to Know in Covenant Killer Manifesto Lawsuit

M.D. Kittle

In the days following the horrifying shootings at Nashville’s Covenant Presbyterian School, police said the killer, Audrey Elizabeth Hale, acted “totally alone.”

Hale, a 28-year-old woman who identified as a transgender man named “Aiden,” was killed by police 14 minutes after her deadly rampage began. Before she was neutralized, Hale had taken the lives of three 9-year-olds and three staff members at the private Christian school she once attended as a child.

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The Star News Network Seeks Court Ruling That FBI Is Breaking the Law in Its Refusal to Release Covenant Killer Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

The Star News Network asked a federal court on Thursday to issue summary judgment declaring the Federal Bureau of Investigation violated the law and must immediately turn over the Covenant Killer’s manifesto and related records.

Star News and its parent company, Star News Digital Media Inc., earlier this month filed a federal lawsuit against the FBI demanding it release the relevant writings of Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the mass murderer who in late March shot dead three 9-year-olds and three staff members at Nashville’s Covenant Presbyterian School.

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Metro Nashville Lead Attorney Admits Trying to Slow Down Court Proceedings to Let School, Parents Intervene in Covenant Killer Records Lawsuit

M.D. Kittle

We learned this week that Metro Nashville’s lawyers deliberately attempted to slow down court proceedings on the lawsuit seeking the release of the Covenant Killer’s manifesto and related documents.

Such delay tactics raise an important question: Is the city government colluding with the Covenant Presbyterian School and families of the private Christian elementary school to keep the records from the public?  

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Judge to Decide Wednesday Whether School, Parents, Are Allowed to Intervene in Lawsuit Seeking Covenant Killer Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles heard plenty of opinions Monday — many of them dripping with emotion — on a consolidated lawsuit seeking the release of the Covenant School Killer’s manifesto and related writings. 

Myles is expected to issue an order on Wednesday deciding whether Covenant Presbyterian School parents, the private Christian school and the Covenant Presbyterian Church can intervene in the lawsuit. 

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Christian Leader Calls for Immediate Release of Covenant School Shooter’s Manifesto Following Durham Report: ‘FBI Has Been Compromised’

Susan Berry, PhD

The director of the Christian Defense Coalition told The Star News Network in an interview Friday it is crucial that the FBI release The Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale’s manifesto to the public, especially in the wake of the “scathing report” by Special Counsel John Durham that has led to a firestorm over the federal law enforcement agency’s integrity and analysis.

“There have been many stories that the local Nashville Police Department is turning much of the manifesto in detail writings of Audrey Hale over to the FBI, for analysis, to try to get a sense of a profile, any issues that might help ensure that something like this doesn’t happen again,” Rev. Patrick Mahoney said.

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Metro Nashville Police Claim ‘Active’ Investigation into Covenant School Massacre is Ongoing, Could Take a Year to Complete

M.D. Kittle

Metropolitan Nashville Police Department Assistant Chief Mike Hagar claims there is an “active” investigation into the Covenant Presbyterian School shootings and that releasing the Covenant killer’s manifesto and related writings would be harmful. A lieutenant with the police department says it could take up to a year to complete said invetigation. 

In a sworn declaration, Hagar said he is not opposed to the release of a redacted version of the documents.

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Covenant School Parents File Motion to Intervene in Lawsuits Seeking Release of Covenant Killer Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

Parents of the three children killed in the Covenant Presbyterian School shootings are now seeking to intervene in lawsuits demanding the release of the Covenant killer’s manifesto and related documents.

And The Tennessee Star learned Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles rescheduled Thursday’s conference status meeting on the lawsuits for 1 p.m. Monday. It’s yet another delay in an increasingly complex web of lawsuits, consolidations, and interventions over the mass shooter’s writings.

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The Tennessean Follows Lead of The Tennessee Star, Sues to Obtain the Covenant Killer Manifesto

M.D. Kittle

The Tennessean on Wednesday followed The Tennessee Star and other organizations in filing a lawsuit against the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County demanding the release of the Covenant School killer’s manifesto and related documents. 

The Nashville-based newspaper’s lawsuit comes nearly two months after Audrey Elizabeth Hale shot her way into the Covenant Presbyterian Scho

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Gov. Lee’s Office Won’t Confirm Whether He Met with State Rep. Justin Jones on Gun Control

Peter D'Abrosca

Gov. Bill Lee’s office did not respond to The Tennessee Star’s Monday inquiries seeking clarification on whether Lee met with Rep. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) and a group of students to discuss gun control last week. 

Friday, the far-left Tennessee Holler posted a video to Twitter claiming that he was marching to Lee’s office with students to stress the urgency of implementing gun control measures during the upcoming August special legislative session. 

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Davidson County Court Chancellor Reviewing Covenant Killer Manifesto as Public Records Lawsuits Pile Up

M.D. Kittle

Davidson County Chancellor I’Ashea Myles is reviewing the unredacted and proposed redacted journal and other writings of the Covenant School killer ahead of Thursday’s scheduled status conference meeting, sources with knowledge of the case tell The Tennessee Star. 

Myles has scheduled a Show Cause hearing for June 8 on the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department’s refusal to turnover what has commonly been referred to as the “manifesto” of Audrey Elizabeth Hale, who stormed into Nashville’s Covenant Presbyterian School on March 27 and fatally killed three 9-year-olds and three staff members. 

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DOJ’s Shadowy ‘Community Relations Service’ May Be Behind Covenant Killer Manifesto Coverup, Sources Say

M.D. Kittle

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Metropolitan Nashville Police Department have refused to release the manifesto and related documents of the Covenant School killer, citing spurious reasons for their denials. 

But is a shadowy Department of Justice unit billing itself as “America’s peacemaker” behind the information freeze? Some say the disclosure dance has all the markings of the Community Relations Service. 

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Gov. Lee Signs School Safety Bill into Law Ahead of Special Gun Control Session

Peter D'Abrosca

Ahead of August’s special session wherein Gov. Bill Lee (R) is expect to push for “Order of Protection” (red flag) laws, the governor has signed into law a bill that provides financial resources for school security measures. 

Namely, HB 0322 allocates $30 million for the state to hire homeland security agents in each county to serve both public and private schools. The new law also provides $140 million for one full-time, armed School Resource Officer (SRO) for every public school in the state. 

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