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.
“Attempts were made last month to interview a former MNPD detective who possessed the images as part of his official duties,” the department wrote, before revealing the former detective “declined and is no longer a member of law enforcement.” MNPD noted it does “not have the ability to compel statements or cooperation from former employees.”
Seven officers were placed on administrative assignment in November, and three remained on administrative assignment as recently as last week, but the release announced that all officers have returned to normal duties.
According to the release, the photographs of Hale’s manifesto were captured by detectives assigned to MNPD’s Specialized Investigations Division “in the immediacy of the moment just after the shooter’s journals were discovered in their vehicle.”
Two photos were taken by one detective, while the third was taken by the second, and MNPD explained they were captured “as part of intelligence gathering to learn more about the shooter and determine whether anyone else was involved with her.”
The admission from MNPD follows comedian and commentator Steven Crowder, who published the leaked images last month, stating that none of the seven officers identified by MNPD were involved in the release.
Crowder also claimed to have two sources for the manifesto pages he published, with one being a member of law enforcement who was at the scene of Hale’s crimes after the shooting. Hale, a biological female who identified as a transgender man, fatally shot six people at the Covenant School, including three 9-year-old students and three staff members.
Following Crowder’s publication of the leaked manifesto materials, Star News Digital Media Inc., the owner and operator of The Tennessee Star, made a new filing in its ongoing lawsuit against the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which seeks to compel the full manifesto’s release.
The FBI has yet to formally confirm the leaked pages’ authenticity, and previously claimed that releasing even one page from the manifesto could jeopardize ongoing investigations due to the names mentioned within the pages. The only names contained within the three pages leaked by Crowder appear to reference Hale’s grandmother.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and the Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “John Drake” by Metro Nashville Police Department. Background Photo “Covenant School” by Metro Nashville Police Department.
Under Joe Biden’s Weimar Government,
just declare an emergency and you no longer need to obey laws.
You can even illegally start wars around the World and overthrow the US Constitution.
Nothing to see here.
violate the open records law, nothing happens apparently.
different incident same coverups
Whoever is refusing to release it is in violation of the Tennessee Open Records Law. Will that person or persons be held accountable, arrested and prosecuted?
This reminds me of how the government stonewalled the mass shooting in Las Vegas a couple of years ago. The explanation of a single shooter and security images contradicted the “official” findings. It all appears to be a cover up of information that would be bad for someone or someones at a high level. Same old garbage. We are being lied to.