NATIONAL NEWS

Parents hope to keep Tennessee school shooter’s ‘dangerous and harmful’ writings secret

May 17, 2023, 3:32 PM | Updated: 4:00 pm

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A group of Tennessee parents whose children attend three 9-year-olds and three adults, filed a motion Wednesday seeking to keep the shooter’s writings from being released to the public.

“The Parents see no good that can come from the release and wish to contend that the writings — which they believe are the dangerous and harmful writings of a mentally-damaged person — should not be released at all,” their filling reads.

Their motion comes just days after more than 60 Tennessee House Republicans called for the writings to be released.

In a Monday letter to Nashville Police Chief John Drake, House Republican Caucus Chairman Jeremy Faison said the timely release of the records is “critical to understanding the shooter’s behavior and motives” before lawmakers convene for a special session where they are expected to consider a proposal to remove firearms from people judged dangerous to themselves or others.

In addition, three conservative groups had previously filed lawsuits seeking to force Nashville police to turn over the records. The Covenant parents are seeking to intervene in those cases, which were filed by The Tennessee Firearms Association, Star News Digital Media and the National Police Association, a nonprofit that says it works to educate people about how to help police departments.

The groups sued after Nashville police denied their public records requests. Police claimed the writings were protected from release as long as they were part of an open investigation, but they indicated that they would release them at some point.

In late April, police said they were reviewing the writings for public release, and Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee tweeted that the release was coming “very soon.” A week later, police reversed course, saying that because of the lawsuits they would await the direction of the court.

Since then, the cases have become more complicated. In addition to the Covenant parents, The Covenant School is asking to intervene as well as the church that runs it, Covenant Presbyterian Church.

The Associated Press is one of several groups that have requested the writings but not filed a lawsuit to obtain them.

Police have said the shooter, Audrey Hale, had been planning the massacre for months. Hale fired 152 rounds during the attack before being killed by police. Hale was under a doctor’s care for an undisclosed “emotional disorder,” police said. However, authorities haven’t disclosed a link between that care and the shooting.

The three children who were killed in the shooting were Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs and William Kinney. The three adults were Katherine Koonce, 60, the head of the school, custodian Mike Hill, 61, and 61-year-old substitute teacher Cynthia Peak.

___

Associated Press writers Jonathan Mattise and Kimberlee Kruesi contributed to this report.

National News

Lilly Mullens of the Roanoke College Swim Team, is hugged by Republican presidential nominee former...

Associated Press

Trump wants to narrow his deficit with women but he’s not changing how he talks about them

GASTONIA, N.C. (AP) — Donald Trump says he will be the “protector” of women, whether they like it or not. He’s campaigned with men who use sexist and crude language. He’s expressed alarm at the idea that wives might vote differently from their husbands. And the former Republican president has suggested that Democrat Kamala Harris, […]

4 minutes ago

Houthi supporters raise their machine guns during an Anti- U.S and Israel rally in Sanaa, Yemen, Fr...

Associated Press

Iran’s help has transformed Yemen’s Houthi rebels into a potent military force, UN experts say

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Yemen’s Houthi rebels have been transformed from a local armed group with limited capabilities to a powerful military organization with support from Iran, Iraqi armed groups, Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants and others, U.N. experts said in a new report. The Iranian-backed Houthis have exploited the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and worked to […]

1 hour ago

Associated Press

Police in Michigan say 4 killed, 17 injured after semitruck crashes into vehicles stuck in traffic

WEBBERVILLE, Mich. (AP) — Four people were killed and 17 others injured late Saturday after a semitruck crashed into more than a dozen vehicles backed up on Interstate 96 in southeastern Michigan, according to state police. Traffic on I-96 near Webberville had been temporarily stopped Saturday as utility crews were completed work on power lines […]

1 hour ago

FILE - President Donald Trump brings Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., on stage during...

Associated Press

Who will replace Mitch McConnell as Senate GOP leader? It remains deeply uncertain

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans vying to replace longtime leader Mitch McConnell have been crossing the country to campaign and fundraise for colleagues, making their final arguments before a consequential ballot the week after the presidential election. But their pitches are mostly behind closed doors, and most GOP senators won’t yet say which lawmaker they […]

4 hours ago

Voters line up outside the Bucks County Administration Building during early voting in the general ...

Associated Press

When polls close in battleground states on Election Day

WASHINGTON (AP) — The results on Election Day will come down to seven states: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump have visited them the most. Together, these states are likely to deliver the Electoral College votes needed for the winning candidate to get […]

4 hours ago

Associated Press

Tornado and severe thunderstorm cause damage in Oklahoma City area

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A tornado and severe thunderstorm struck the Oklahoma City area early Sunday, causing an unspecified amount of damage, according to weather forecasters and local media. There were no immediate reports of injuries. More than 53,000 customers were without power in the state, according to PowerOutage.us. The damage in one neighborhood included […]

6 hours ago

Parents hope to keep Tennessee school shooter’s ‘dangerous and harmful’ writings secret