What is your
name? All right, good afternoon.
I'm Don Aaron with the
Nashville Police Department.
We want to give you a brief update this
afternoon as to what we know abt
the covenant murders on yesterd.
There's one rumor going on
throughout the community that we
want to take a moment to clear .
There are those who think that specific
individuals were targeted by the shooter
who entered the building on Mon.
We have no evidence that indivis
were specifically targeted this school,
this church building was a targt
of the shooter,
but we have no information at
present to indicate that the
shooter was specifically target.
Any one of the six individuals
who were murdered,
Chief John Drake, will now update you
on the progress of the investign
overnight and this morning,
including what we know about the
individual's purchases of fireas
over the past couple of years.
Again, this will be a brief
briefing today, Chief John Drak.
Good afternoon, everyone.
Thank you again for being here.
Just a brief update of
what we know right now.
We've interviewed the parents of
Audrey Hale and we've determined
that Audrey bought 7 firearms f5
different local gun stores here legally,
they were legally purchased.
Three of those weapons were.
Used yesterday during this
horrific tragedy that happened.
We know that they felt that shed
one weapon and that she sold it.
She was under care,
doctor's care for an emotional disorder.
Law enforcement knew nothing abt
the treatment she was receiving,
but her parents felt that she sd
not own weapons they were under.
The impression that was when she sold
the one weapon that she did not own anymore.
As it turned out,
she had been hiding several
weapons within the house.
We also don't have a motive at this time.
We feel that these students that
were targeted were randomly targeted.
There was not any particular stt
that they were that she was loog
for at the time of the incident.
And that's what we know as I spk
and I will take any questions a.
So in the manifesto,
there's several different
writings about other locations.
There were locations that
was talks about the school.
There was a map of the school drawing
of how potentially she would enter and
the assaults that would take pl.
There's a it's quite a bit of writing to it.
I have not read the whole
the entire manifesto.
Our team and the FBI have
been working on this,
so they were spread out in
different locations that when
I went into the actual church,
the kids had already been
transported to the hospital als.
The two of the adults I did see
the head school person and she
was in the hallway by the offic.
That's the only one.
They were spread out,
wasn't in one common area,
but they were spread out.
There were some writings in the
manifesto about other locations,
but as far as it been an actual target.
I can't confirm that at this time. Chief,
can we talk about your body Cam footage?
Do you feel like your officers didn't
have anything one at a time? So,
just about the six victims were killed.
Where exactly were they?
You know, when they walked
in through the hallways,
what just happened?
And I also heard periphery
that perhaps the head of the
school may have ran towards the.
It's very possible the head of
the school could have done that.
I can't confirm that one way or the other.
I do know she was in the hallway by herself.
There was a confrontation.
I'm sure he can tell the way
she was laying in the hallway.
There was the custodian, africanamerican,
that she shot through the door to enter.
She sprayed rounds through the glass,
striking him.
You could see where where he came to rest.
As far as the others,
they will just spread out
in different locations.
I can't say it was a confrontat,
but they were met. She met the
hit person in the hallway.
This man right here.
Yeah. Thank you, chief.
You mentioned the guns,
the multiple guns,
and that the shooter was
under the care of a doctor.
Is there any law in this state
that would have allowed police
to take those guns away from ths
person had it been reported?
If it had been reported?
There's not a law for that.
But had it been reported
that she was suicidal?
Or that she was going to kill someone
and had been made known to us.
Then we would have tried
to to get those weapons.
But as it stands we had absolutely no idea.
But actually who this person wa,
if she even existed.
So can you talk a little bit about the time?
So we know yesterday the
Miss Hale was leaving out of the
residence, she had a red bag.
They asked her what was in the d
bag and I think she just dismissed it
because it was a a motherly thing and
I didn't look in the back at the time.
She didn't know that her daughter had any
weapons and didn't think any differently.
Again, they lost a child,
so it's very traumatic for them.
So I think you were first. So cd
you talk about the police respo?
I know they engaged the shooter.
Pretty quickly once they got to the school.
But can you talk about the events that
let up from when they got the c?
What time do they arrive at the school?
And could you talk about that that that time?
But the team fears about
maybe like 14 minutes or so.
Yeah. So they got the call at 1,
and by 1024, they had engaged the suspect.
As they arrived on the property.
There were police cars been hit by gunfire.
The suspect was in a upper leve.
We believe there's been some training have
been able to shoot from a higher level.
And her gunfire, from the video I've seen,
she stood away from the glass se
wouldn't be an easy target to be shot.
But as officers were
approaching the building,
there was gunfire going on.
They went in, they went through
door by door as we clear buildi,
they heard gunfire and immediaty
ran to that.
And and then took care of
the this horrible situation
and how long did it take offices
to actually get to the school?
Initially from when the first call came in,
from the time it went out from
10:13 to 10:24 it was over
the exact time, arrival time.
I'm not sure I know that myself.
I ran emergency and as I got the
they were coming out bloody and
all kind of things were happeni.
So I barely miss being able.
Or or being there to go in as w.
So it was really quick the respe
and I think you were next. So y,
Chief, I was just going to ask u
about the two officers reporting
that we've seen this morning.
Have they ever been placed in
a situation like that before?
To my knowledge,
I do not remember if if those tn
particular have been in that situation.
Officer Collazo has worked as
a paramedic with the SWAT team.
So I'm sure he's had some
type of weapons training.
I was really impressed that
when all that was going on,
the danger that somebody took
control and said let's go, let',
let's go and went in and took care of
and just try to end this situat.
But as far as being in this bef,
I'm unsure you Sir,
a friend of the families has
reported a friend of the Hale
family reportedly said that.
Audrey was autistic.
We speak that if you know
if that's that true. I
can't confirm that I've heard that but
I can't confirm if that's true or not.
Just one more question, one more question and
we're going to stop. One more
any indication of the significat
of yesterday, why the shooter my
have done this yesterday and alo
do you have anything that could
indicate whether this was targeted or.
I can't confirm either.
I'm not sure if that we're approaching
a holy period at Easter and all of that.
I can't confirm any of that.
Do not know and and so why she
targeted that particular church.
We do know she was a student at
that at that church at one point
but unsure right now if that
was the reason why and I think
you I'll take one more if it's
on your two offices there. How
are they feeling today.
So I I I talked to them earlier
and they're trying to decompres,
trying to make sense of all of .
I talked to President Biden.
He's going to reach out
and talk to them as well.
They're just trying to do
whatever they can with their
families and just kind of remove
themselves from all of this. So
thank you all very much.
Thank you. Thank you.