Those waiting for police to release the Nashville school shooter’s manifesto may not want to hold their breath.
Nashville police were met with widespread exasperation after saying they will withhold communications left by Audrey Elizabeth Hale, who was killed by police in the aftermath of the deadly March 27 shooting at The Covenant School.
“Covenant investigation update: Due to pending litigation filed this week, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department has been advised by counsel to hold in abeyance the release of records related to the shooting at The Covenant School pending orders or direction of the court,” the department tweeted Wednesday.
The reaction on social media included “Release the manifesto,” “Stop gaslighting everyone” and “Enough with the coverup!”
Ironically, the Freedom of Information Act lawsuits filed Monday by Judicial Watch and the National Police Association both seek the disclosure of the manifesto, journals and other documents that police say were found in the shooter’s vehicle and bedroom.
Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton called the department’s explanation for the delay “absurd.”
“It’s the first time in history a government agency has said that they can’t release records because someone’s asking for them,” Mr. Fitton told The Washington Times. “I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
The delay fueled the mounting frustration over the lack of transparency on the motive of the shooter, a female who identified as male, spurring speculation that the manifesto and other communications have been withheld to avoid casting the transgender community in a negative light.
Tennessee Republican legislators have intensified their calls for transparency ahead of an anticipated special session on firearms and public safety.
“Audrey Hale murdered six Christians, and many Tennesseans are demanding that their state legislature ‘do something,’” House Republican Caucus Chairman Jeremy Faison tweeted April 24. “We cannot possibly address this horrific situation until we know what was in her manifesto.”
Pushing back was Democratic state Rep. John Ray Clemmons, who tweeted April 28 that the focus should be “less on what was in a ‘manifesto’ and more on how we’re going to work together across the aisle to enact a law that will allow for the timely and temporary removal of firearms from individuals who pose a threat to themselves and others.”
Audrey Hale, a 28-year-old former Covenant student, killed three 9-year-old children and three adult staffers at the school, part of the Covenant Presbyterian Church.
“Remember, there’s a debate in Tennessee ongoing about gun rights as well,” Mr. Fitton said. “There are political interests in mitigating or minimizing the actual motives of the shooter by transgender extremists and the anti-gun activists.”
The department’s decision to delay sharing records came shortly after Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he had been told their release was imminent.
“The Covenant shooting was a tragedy beyond comprehension, & Tennesseans need clarity,” Mr. Lee tweeted April 27. “We’ve been in touch with the Nashville Police Department, & today, Chief Drake assured me that documents & information regarding the shooter will be released to the public very soon.”
Speculation about political gamesmanship abounds. Rep. Tim Burchett, Tennessee Republican, said he believes the “woke” FBI is behind the foot-dragging.
The Washington Times has reached out to the FBI for comment.
“I believe if it was up to the folks in Tennessee, they would be released,” Mr. Burchett said in an April 24 interview on News Nation. “I suspect the FBI is in complete control of this and they are the ones that are holding it back.”
David Rausch, director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, sought to downplay the significance of the unreleased documents.
“It’s been characterized as a manifesto. I think it’s been mischaracterized, personally,” Mr. Rausch told PIJN-TV. “When you talk about ‘manifesto,’ you talk about something similar to what the Unabomber left behind, ideological expressions. None of that has surfaced in these writings.”
The Judicial Watch lawsuit was brought after authorities denied an open-records request for police reports, video footage and photos filed by former Hamilton County Sheriff James Hammond, and two requests by the Tennessee Firearms Association for emails and communications.
Mr. Fitton pointed out that police body-camera footage from the scene was released the day after the shooting.
“I don’t understand why we got videos from the police officers immediately, but this other basic information has been withheld for weeks on an investigation that’s obviously over,” he said. “The shooter is dead. There’s agreement that there’s no one else involved.”
Mr. Fitton said a hearing on the lawsuit filed in Chancery Court in Davidson County is expected within the next two weeks.
“There’s intense public interest in this manifesto, which is heightened by the refusal to release it,” he said.
