Nashville suspect planned for 'months to commit mass murder at The Covenant School,' fired 152 rounds

Three children and three adults were killed in the March 27 shooting.

ByEmily Shapiro
April 3, 2023, 5:50 PM

The suspect who allegedly shot and killed six people at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, last week had been planning for "months to commit mass murder at The Covenant School," police said, citing the suspect's journals.

The suspect -- identified by police as 28-year-old Audrey Hale, a former Covenant School student -- fired 152 rounds during the March 27 mass shooting, Nashville police said in a statement Monday.

PHOTO: Police identified 28-year-old Audrey Hale as the suspect in the shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tenn., Mar. 27, 2023.
Police identified 28-year-old Audrey Hale as the suspect in the shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tenn., Mar. 27, 2023.
Obtained by ABC News
PHOTO: Robin Wolfende prays at a makeshift memorial for victims outside the Covenant School building at the Covenant Presbyterian Church following a shooting, in Nashville, March 28, 2023.
Robin Wolfende prays at a makeshift memorial for victims outside the Covenant School building at the Covenant Presbyterian Church following a shooting, in Nashville, March 28, 2023.
Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

Hale was armed with two assault-style rifles, a handgun and "significant ammunition" at the time of the attack, according to police. Authorities said Hale owned seven legally purchased guns from five different local stores.

The seven guns that were confiscated by the authorities were purchased between October 30, 2020 and June 6, 2022, a law enforcement official told ABC News. The last weapon purchased was an AR-15 style weapon, according to the official.

Hale was shot and killed by police inside the school. The two officers who shot at Hale discharged four rounds each, according to police.

A motive remains unknown, but authorities determined that "Hale considered the actions of other mass murderers," police said.

PHOTO: Children and a woman depart the reunification center at the Woodmont Baptist church after a school shooting, Mar. 27, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn.
Children and a woman depart the reunification center at the Woodmont Baptist church after a school shooting, Mar. 27, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn.
John Bazemore/AP
PHOTO: Children from The Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville, Tenn., hold hands as they are taken to a reunification site at the Woodmont Baptist Church after a deadly shooting at their school on Monday, March 27, 2023.
Children from The Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville, Tenn., hold hands as they are taken to a reunification site at the Woodmont Baptist Church after a deadly shooting at their school on Monday, March 27, 2023.
Jonathan Mattise/AP

Hale had a detailed map of the school as well as "writings and a book we consider to be like a manifesto," Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake told ABC News last week.

Hale's writings, left behind in a car at the scene and a bedroom, are under review by Nashville police and the FBI, authorities said Monday.

PHOTO: School buses with children arrive at Woodmont Baptist Church to be reunited with their families after a mass shooting at The Covenant School, Mar. 27, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn.
School buses with children arrive at Woodmont Baptist Church to be reunited with their families after a mass shooting at The Covenant School, Mar. 27, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn.
Seth Herald/Getty Images
PHOTO: A child weeps while on a bus leaving The Covenant School, following a mass shooting at the school in Nashville, Tenn., Mar. 27, 2023.
A child weeps while on a bus leaving The Covenant School, following a mass shooting at the school in Nashville, Tenn., Mar. 27, 2023.
Nicole Hester/USA Today Network via REUTERS

A police spokesperson said Hale was assigned female at birth but pointed to a social media account linked to Hale that included the use of the pronouns he/him.

Funerals are underway for the three children and three adults killed. The victims were identified as 9-year-old Evelyn Dieckhaus, 9-year-old Hallie Scruggs, 9-year-old Will Kinney, substitute teacher Cynthia Peak, school custodian Mike Hill, and the head of the school, Katherine Koonce.

ABC News' Stephanie Wash, Pierre Thomas and Luke Barr contributed to this report.