(LifeSiteNews) — Nashville police have identified 28-year-old “transgender” woman Audrey Hale as the now-deceased suspect in a deadly mass shooting at a private Christian elementary school in Tennessee on Monday.
According to local law enforcement, Hale opened fire at The Covenant School — a private, Presbyterian elementary school — in Nashville at 10 a.m. local time, leaving three 9-year-old children dead, along with three adult staff members.
Hale, a woman who “identified” as a man, was killed by police.
Active shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale drove to Covenant Church/School in her Honda Fit this morning, parked, and shot her way into the building. She was armed with 2 assault-type guns and a 9 millimeter pistol. pic.twitter.com/mIk2pDmCwQ
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) March 28, 2023
While a motive has yet to be definitively determined, police did confirm that Hale is a former student of the school and that the attack was targeted.
Immediately after the news broke that the suspect considered herself to be “transgender,” social media erupted with speculation about the motivation behind the deadly attack.
Turning Point USA’s Benny Johnson took to Twitter to point out that this attack is not the first time in recent memory that a person identifying as “trans” or “non-binary” has committed a mass shooting, writing:
The Colorado Springs shooter identified as non binary.
The Denver shooter identified as trans.
The Aberdeen shooter identified as trans.
The Nashville shooter identified as trans.
One thing is VERY clear: the modern trans movement is radicalizing activists into terrorists.
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) March 27, 2023
Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also chimed in with her thoughts, questioning whether the medical establishment’s approach to treating people with gender dysphoria may have played a role in the attack.
Other conservatives took to social media to mourn the loss of the young victims, and to plead for prayers for the families affected.
Hallie Scruggs, daughter of a local Nashville pastor was one of the children killed in the shooting on Monday.
Horrific. Pray for the families 🙏 pic.twitter.com/nh6wmuyuA9
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 28, 2023
Police released body camera footage from the shooting Tuesday morning.
Nashville Police have released the bodycam footage and it cannot be stressed enough how remarkable this response was. These men are absolute heroes. pic.twitter.com/aOT8IJyH04
— Sara Gonzales (@SaraGonzalesTX) March 28, 2023
