Category: Tennessee

Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Claimed She Had ‘Too Much Estrogen, or I’m Just a Sad, Lonely Boy’ in Recovered Journal

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale wrote about having “too much estrogen” and described herself as “a sad, lonely boy,” in the journal police recovered from her vehicle after her attack that claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults on March 27, 2023.

The Tennessee Star confirmed last Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages of Hale’s writings from a source close to the Covenant investigation, including several several entries where Hale wrote about her struggles with gender identity.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Claimed ‘Independence is Impossible’ Due to ‘My Autism’ in Recovered Journal

Tom Pappert
Audrey Elizabeth Hale

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale claimed in her journal, recovered by police after her March 27, 2023 attack, that she would be unable to lead an independent life due to her purported autism diagnosis.

The Tennessee Star confirmed last Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages written by Hale from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Wrote Dozen Journal Entries About Love for Middle School Friend She Contacted on Day of Attack

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale, Averianna the Personality

The journal recovered by police from the vehicle driven by Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale contains more than a dozen entries about Paige Averianna Patton, a Nashville-based radio personality who Hale previously befriended as a middle school student.

The Tennessee Star reported last Wednesday it obtained about 80 pages from Hale’s journal via a source close to the Covenant investigation, including a total of 18 that appear to mention Patton either by name or indirectly.

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Next Tennessee Budget Accounts for Drop in Tax and Use Collections

The Center Square
Governor Bill Lee

Tennessee has $144 million for education freedom scholarships that won’t be spent and will deposit an additional $100 million in the budget set to go into place for July 1.

Sycamore Institute, a non-partisan public policy research institute, recently published an analysis of what changed from Gov. Bill Lee’s initial proposed budget to the $52.8 billion budget that passed the Tennessee Legislature.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Left Parents Suicide Note with Instructions for ‘If I Don’t Survive My Massacre’

Tom Pappert
Audrey Elizabeth Hale

The Tennessee Star has obtained the suicide note left by Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale to her parents before her devastating March 27, 2023 attack that claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults.

Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) investigators found the note posted to Hale’s bedroom wall, which The Star has learned was adorned with childhood memorabilia and photos.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Called Herself ‘White Nothingness,’ Wrote About Romantic Desire for ‘Brown Girls’ in Recovered Journal

Tom Pappert
Audrey-Elizabeth Hale

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale appeared to refer to herself as “white nothingness” twice and express her physical attraction to “brown girls” in the journal police recovered from her vehicle.

The Tennessee Star confirmed last Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages of Hale’s writings from a source close to the Covenant investigation. The writings were recovered by the Metro Nashville Police Department on the day of the March 27, 2023 attack that claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults.

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Vanderbilt Silent on Possible Transgender Treatment for Covenant Killer Audrey Hale

Tom Pappert
Vanderbilt Madical Center, North

The Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) is silent about whether Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale sought transgender drugs, surgeries or other gender affirming treatment following the revelation she was a 22-year mental health patient of staff at VUMC.

VUMC has not replied to multiple requests for comment from The Tennessee Star following the revelations, which include confirmation that Hale was prescribed at least four medications from VUMC and was treated by mental health professionals associated with VUMC since April 2001.

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Air Force Slapped with Lawsuit After Stonewalling Release of Transgender Health Unit Records

Admin
Air Force

A recently filed lawsuit from a national security think tank is alleging that the U.S. Air Force is wrongfully withholding records related to its transgender care services.

The Center to Advance Security in America (CASA) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request in August 2023 seeking materials related to the Air Force’s Transgender Health Medical Evaluation Unit (THEMU), according to a copy of the suit obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation. The Air Force initially acknowledged the FOIA request but then failed to provide further updates to CASA, prompting the think tank to file a lawsuit in late May against the branch in a Washington, D.C., district court for the records.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Wrote About Desire to Kill Her Father in Recovered Journal

Tom Pappert
Audrey Elizabeth Hale

The journal recovered from the vehicle driven by Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale includes at least five entries expressing animosity toward her father, including one page where Hale wrote of her desire to kill him.

The Tennessee Star confirmed last Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages written by Audrey Hale from a source close to the Covenant investigation.

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Fanatics Fined $50K and Zen Sports Fined $60K for Tennessee Sports Wagering Violations

The Center Square
Fanatics Sportsbook

Fanatics Sportsbook was fined $50,000 in Tennessee for allowing eight people who were on an in-app self-exclusion list to place bets during that exclusion. Zen Sports received a $60,000 for not maintaining a high enough balance in its reserve account to cover outstanding bets and obligations.

The issue was self-reported by Fanatics and the Tennessee Sports Wagering Council agreed with the fine, which worked out to eight violations with a Level 2 fine of $6,250 apiece.

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Shatter-Resistant Glass Films to Be Installed on Every Wilson County School Campus This Summer

Kaitlin Housler
WCS Meeting

The Wilson County School District voted unanimously to approve shatter-resistant glass films to be installed at each of its 24 brick-and-mortar campuses.

On Monday, board members Kimberly McGee, Larry Tomlinson, Carrie Pfeiffer, Jamie Farough, Melissa Lynn, Joseph Padilla, and Beth Meyers all voted to approve Director of Schools Jeff Luttrell’s recommendation that the board hire Osteen Construction to install the security film for a total of $900,105.36.

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Journal Entry Reveals How Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Spent Last Week Before Attack

Tom Pappert

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale made a list of activities to complete prior to March 27, 2023, when she committed the devastating attack which claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults.

The Tennessee Star confirmed on Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages of Hale’s writings that were recovered from the vehicle she drove to the school from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Wrote About Reuniting with Deceased Middle School Friend After Death: ‘We Will Become Whole’

Tom Pappert
Sydney Sims

Covenant School killer Audrey Hale wrote extensively about a former classmate and friend who died suddenly following a 2022 vehicle accident, seemingly detailing fantasies in which they would reunite after Hale’s death.

The Tennessee Star confirmed on Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages of Hale’s writings that were recovered from her vehicle after her March 27, 2023 attack that claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults working at the school.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Wrote ‘Freelance Failure’ List Charting Professional Shortcomings in Recovered Journal

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale Office

Audrey Elizabeth Hale, who orchestrated the devastating Covenant School attack that claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults on March 27, 2023, wrote a list of her professional failures in the journal police recovered from her vehicle.

The Tennessee Star reported on Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages of Hale’s writings from a source close to the Covenant investigation.

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Audrey Hale Claimed She Planned Covenant Attack for Five Years in Recovered Journal, Plan ‘Near Perfection’

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale wrote in a journal recovered from her vehicle that she planned her attack for five years and prepared meticulously until her devastating plot was “near perfection.”

The Tennessee Star reported on Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages of Hale’s writings which police recovered from her vehicle from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation. 

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Maryville College Refuses to Hold Blount County Pride Event

Peter D'Abrosca

A gay pride group in Blount County said on its Facebook page that it was denied rental space at Maryville College to host an event during “Pride Month.”

“In hopes of replicating the joy and success of our 2023 event at Clayton Center for the Arts, we once again submitted an application to Maryville College for Blount Pride 2024,” Blount Pride said. “Our application was considered for several months, after which we were asked to exclude drag from the festival. We asked the college several questions, including asking them to define drag performance. They did not answer our questions, but instead, two weeks later, denied our application.”

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Libertarian Party of Tennessee Breaks Silence, Condemns ‘Clearly Politically Motivated’ Conviction of President Trump

Kaitlin Housler

The Libertarian Party of Tennessee released a statement Thursday, one week after former President Donald Trump was found guilty by a Manhattan jury on all 34 counts in the falsification of business records linked to the Stormy Daniels hush money scandal, condemning the “clearly politically motivated” conviction of the former president.

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Tennessee U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty Latest Republican to Join Pledge Against White House Priorities

Kaitlin Housler
Bill Hagerty

U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN) joined a group of 13 other Republican members of the U.S. Senate in signing a pledge vowing to not “aid and abet” the Biden administration in its “project to tear this country apart.”

The pledge was created last week on May 31 – just one day after former President Donald Trump was found guilty by a Manhattan jury on all 34 counts in the falsification of business records linked to the Stormy Daniels hush money scandal, marking the first time in history that a U.S. president has been convicted of a felony.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Declared Herself ‘Most Unhappy Boy Alive’ in Recovered Journal

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale

Covenant School killer Audrey Hale, who was born a biological female but identified as a transgender male during her March 27, 2023 attack, described herself as the “most unhappy boy alive” in a journal police recovered from her vehicle.

The Tennessee Star reported on Wednesday it obtained dozens of pages from the journal Hale brought with her to the Covenant School from a source close to the investigation. In this entry, Hale described struggling with gender identity.

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Alleged Cyberstalker McKenzie McClure Ordered to ‘Open-Door’ Psychiatric Center in East Tennessee

Matthew Giffin
McKenzie McClure, Pasaenda Villa

The mental health facility alleged cyberstalker McKenzie McClure was ordered to be released to on Monday to an “open-door” psychiatric treatment center in East Tennessee.

Pasadena Villa in Sevierville, Tennessee, houses patients who voluntarily stay there, according to testimony by Admissions Coordinator Sabina Shakoor. Personnel cannot force patients to stay, and patients have left the facility voluntarily in the past, she continued.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Claimed to Call Suicide Prevention Helpline Five Times, Denied Being ‘Bi-Polar’ in Journal Entry

Tom Pappert
Person on Phone

Covenant School killer Audrey Hale wrote in a journal, recovered from her vehicle after the attack, that she was accused of being “bi-polar” and called a number listed online as the National Suicide Prevention Helpline five times just over two months before the shooting.

The Tennessee Star confirmed on Wednesday it has about 80 pages of Hale’s writings from her journal, which were obtained from a source close to the Covenant investigation. In this journal entry, dated January 16, 2023, Hale also expressed concerns about losing her possessions after her death.

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MNPD Learned on Day of Covenant Shooting Audrey Hale Had Been Treated by Vanderbilt Psychiatric for 22 Years from 2001 Until Her 2023 Death

Tom Pappert
Covenant School Shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale

Metro Nashville Police Department learned Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale was a 22-year patient of mental health professionals at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) on March 27, 2023, the same day she orchestrated her devastating attack that claimed the lives of three 9-year-old students and three adults working at the school.

The Tennessee Star obtained the June 1, 2023 affidavit filed by an MNPD detective to obtain a search warrant for VUMC from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation.

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Thousands Attend Town Hall in Phoenix to Hear Discuss Chasing the Vote, Rigged Elections, and Illegal Immigration

Rachel Alexander

Thousands of people turned out for a town hall put on by Turning Point USA with former President Donald Trump Thursday afternoon at Dream City Church in north Phoenix. Trump and Turning Point CEO Charlie Kirk were the sole speakers at the “Chase the Vote” event, urging patriots to make the 2024 election “too big to rig.” The rest of the event focused heavily on illegal immigration, highly critical of the Biden administration’s record. 

Trump’s last visit to the state was 18 months ago. According to one attendee who arrived at 8 a.m., there were over 4,000 people in line at that time. The temperature got up to 108 degrees, and there were vendors with water and drinks sprinkled throughout the church property. The event officially began at 2 p.m., but Kirk came out a little after noon and spoke in advance of Trump’s 2 p.m. speech. The crowd held up signs with Trump’s mugshot on them. 

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Used Federal Pell Grant Funds to Buy Guns She Used in March 2023 Mass Shooting at Christian School

Matthew Giffin

Covenant School shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale reportedly used funds from a federal Pell grant to buy the guns she used to perpetrate a mass shooting in March, 2023.

99.7 WTN afternoon radio host Brian Wilson reported Wednesday that Hale “took money from an education grant she received to purchase her weapons and to pay for training at a local gun range.”

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Vanderbilt Search Warrant Revealed Prescription List for Covenant Killer Audrey Hale, Confirms Fantasies About School Shooting

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale

The search warrant served by Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) to obtain information from Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) about Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale, obtained by The Tennessee Star, reveals Hale was prescribed at least four medications from VUMC staff.

According to notes taken by a person who reviewed documents obtained when the search warrant was executed, Hale was given access to Buspirone, Lexapro or Escitalopram, Hydroxyzine, and a sodium chloride nasal spray by doctors at VUMC.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Expressed Frustration over Being Misgendered, Desire for ‘Boy Body’ in Recovered Journal

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale expressed frustration over being misgendered, satisfaction with the use of male pronouns and a desire to have a “boy body” in a journal.

The Star on Wednesday confirmed it obtained dozens of pages from Hale’s journal from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation. The journal was retrieved from Hale’s vehicle.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Claimed She ‘Could Have Been Caught’ Preparing for Shooting in ‘Summer of 2021’

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale

Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer, wrote in a journal recovered from her vehicle that she “could have been caught” planning her attack in 2021.

The Tennessee Star on Wednesday confirmed it obtained dozens of pages from the notebook recovered from Hale’s vehicle at the Covenant School from a source familiar with the case.

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Covenant Killer Audrey Hale Wrote 3 Pages in Journal About ‘My Imaginary Penis’

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale Journal

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale, a biological female who identified as a transgender male at the time of her attack, wrote a three-page journal entry titled “My Imaginary Penis” that was included in the writings recovered from her vehicle.

The Tennessee Star confirmed on Wednesday it obtained nearly four dozen pages of Hale’s writings from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation, including the March 11, 2023 entry discussing her desire to have a male anatomy.

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Man Accused of Choking Granddaughter at Nashville Public Bus Station in Latest WeGo Incident

Matthew Giffin
WeGo Transit

A man pushed, grabbed, and choked his granddaughter at a downtown public bus station in Nashville in the latest incident related to criminal activity associated with WeGo, WSMV reported.

Metro Nashville Police Department arrested Kevin Figgins, 58, on Monday. He is charged with domestic assault with bodily injury, and his bond has been set at $1,000, according to Davidson County court records.

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UT Knoxville Advisory Board Votes to Increase Tuition, Asks for Public Guidance

Peter D'Abrosca
University of Tennessee, Knoxville Students

The University of Tennessee – Knoxville’s Campus Advisory Board has voted to increase tuition by 2 percent for for in-state students and 4 percent for out-of-state students, the school announced.

“A combination of enrollment growth and state support has allowed us to keep tuition flat for five of the last six years. The costs for delivering high-quality academic programs, however, have continued to rise in that time,” said Interim Senior Vice Chancellor for Finance and Administration Allen Bolton. “We have worked hard to keep tuition increases as small as possible while still ensuring we can give students the Volunteer experience they expect.”

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Sen. Blackburn to Join Bipartisan Coalition of Colleagues in Visiting Normandy on D-Day

Peter D'Abrosca
Marsha Blackburn

Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) will join a bipartisan coalition of her colleagues visiting Normandy to commemorate the 80th anniversary of when United States troops stormed the shores and entered the European theatre of World War II.

“On the 80th anniversary of D-Day, we will honor the brave Allied and American fighters who stormed the beaches of Normandy in the name of freedom around the world. We will never forget the sacrifices of the Greatest Generation, and I look forward to standing alongside my colleagues and world leaders as we pay tribute on this anniversary,” Blackburn said in a release. 

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PJM Needs More Electricity to Meet 2040 Estimates in 13 States

The Center Square
Transformer

While demand for electricity is set to significantly increase by 2040, planning is not in place to increase electricity production to meet those estimates, according to a new report from Clean Energy Grid related to PJM Interconnection.

PJM coordinates wholesale energy movement for 65 million people through parts or all of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.

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D-Day: The Bold Invasion That Turned the Tide Against Hitler’s Germany

Admin
Tennessee Star

Eighty years ago on June 6, 1944 the United States joined with Great Britain, the free French forces, and Canada to mount a bold invasion of the beachhead in Normandy, France as a last-ditch effort to gain a foothold in Europe against the conquering forces of Hitler’s Germany.

The 160,000-soldier seaborne operation would mark a massive pivot in the Allies’ defense against the Nazis and the bloodthirsty Axis.

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Tennessee State Rep. Jason Zachary Details Importance of Bill that Tightened Duty to Report Law

Kaitlin Housler
Jason Zachary

Tennessee State Representative Jason Zachary (R-Knoxville) suggested his bill that strengthened the state’s duty to report law may have prevented the Covenant School shooting on March 27, 2023 in Nashville if implemented before the shooting took place.

Over the weekend, The Tennessee Star reported it was provided the name of the psychologist who was reportedly part of the care team for Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale.

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Covenant School Shooter Audrey Hale Wrote ‘I Need a Trans Doctor’ 19 Days Before Attack

Tom Pappert
Doctor

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale declared her “need” for a “trans doctor” in a journal or diary entry dated just 19 days before she orchestrated the horrific attack on the Covenant School on March 27, 2023.

The Tennessee Star confirmed on Wednesday that it has obtained nearly four dozen pages of handwritten writings by Hale that were recovered from her vehicle. One of the pages includes an illustrated version of the name Aiden, which is the name Hale used when identifying as a transgender man.

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Report: Covenant School Shooter Fantasized About School Shootings as Middle Schooler

Matthew Giffin

Covenant School shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale had been having fantasies of carrying out school shootings ever since she was a middle schooler, 99.7 WTN afternoon radio host Brian Wilson reported Wednesday.

Wilson revealed a number of other previously unknown details about Hale referencing a “lengthy” document he obtained regarding her and the shooting. He said he had more details he would reveal Thursday.

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Covenant School Killer Audrey Hale Claimed to Witness Injury from Bullet Ricochet at Gun Range Only Two Days Before Attack

Tom Pappert
Audrey Hale Gun Range

Covenant School killer Audrey Elizabeth Hale claimed to witness an accidental injury after training at a Nashville-area gun range just two days before her terrible attack.

Hale reported witnessing the incident in a handwritten journal or diary entry that was recovered from her vehicle, photographed, and eventually provided to The Tennessee Star as part of a portion of Hale’s writings.

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MNPD Subpoenaed Vanderbilt for All Records Related to Treating Covenant Killer Audrey Hale

Tom Pappert
MNPD Vanderbilt

The Tennessee Star has obtained a judicial subpoena sent by a Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) detective to Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) on May 13, 2023, which sought “any and all records of medical and psychological treatment received by Audrey Hale,” who committed the Covenant School shooting on March 27, 2023 that resulted in six dead.

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Audrey Hale Wrote Political Rant About Guns and Transgenderism One Month Before Covenant School Attack

Tom Pappert

The Tennessee Star has obtained dozens of handwritten pages authored by Audrey Elizabeth Hale, who committed the horrific Covenant School shooting on March 27, 2023.

The Star reviewed nearly four dozen images of notebook pages written by Hale that were recovered from the vehicle she drove to the Covenant School which were obtained from a source familiar with the Covenant investigation. 

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Retired MNPD Lieutenant Says Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital Did Not Report Covenant Killer’s Violent Fantasies to Law Enforcement

Kaitlin Housler
Garet Davidson

Retired Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) Lt. Garet Davidson told Michael Patrick Leahy, CEO and editor-in-chief of The Tennessee Star, that Audrey Elizabeth Hale, the Covenant School killer, received treatment from the Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital, where professionals failed to report her violent fantasies to law enforcement. Vanderbilt Psychiatric Hospital is a part of the Vanderbilt University Medical Center system.

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