A group of mothers rallied at the Tennessee State Capitol Tuesday in a desperate plea for lawmakers to tighten gun safety laws after the deadly mass shooting at a Christian school in Nashville.
Three nine-year-old kids and three staff members were killed Monday morning when a 28-year-old transgender woman opened fire at The Covenant School. Former student Audrey Hale carried an assault rifle, a 9mm rifle, and a handgun into the building with “significant ammunition.” Metro Police said she had purchased seven weapons legally prior to the shooting.
Parents stood on the steps of the capitol building Tuesday demanding legislators to stop relaxing gun safety laws.
“I have a child in elementary school. And yesterday I had to tell her what happened,” said Leeann Hewlett, a volunteer with Moms Demand Action.
“She said to me, ‘Momma, again? You told me about this happening a year ago.’ Because I did tell her about Uvalde.’”
Tennessee lawmakers have heard a number of bills this legislative session relating to firearms, including one that would allow college students to bring guns on campuses if they obtain an enhanced carry permit.
Parents like Hewlett believe common-sense gun safety enables law enforcement to better protect communities.
“As they relax laws, we see an increase in gun violence culminating in the awful events that happened at Covenant School,” Hewlett said.
In a Tweet Monday, Gov. Bill Lee asked for Tennesseans to join him in prayer for the Covenant community. After the 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Lee signed an executive order directing broad measures for accountability, school safety and an evaluation of training for Tennessee law enforcement.
Stick with fox17.com for continuing coverage of the Covenant tragedy.