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New York Post
Photos reveal inside of Nashville shooter Audrey Hale’s house where she hid guns
By Allie Griffin,
2023-03-29
Photos obtained by The Post offer an exclusive glimpse into the home where the Nashville school shooter lived and stockpiled guns — including the ones used to kill three children and three adults Monday.
The images show a typical family home with red tulips popping up in the front yard, school portraits framed on a credenza, a wind chime with a cascade of crosses hanging in a window and a child’s bike propped against an exterior wall.
Hale brought three of the deadly weapons — two assault rifles and a handgun — to the Covenant School and gunned down three 9-year-olds, a school custodian, a substitute teacher and the headmaster.
Hale, 28, who was transgender, was shot and killed by police on the second floor of the Christian academy following the rampage .
Investigators raided the Nashville house where Hale lived with her parents soon after and discovered the stockpile of firearms she had legally purchased from local stores, Metro Nashville police said.
Hale’s parents told cops they had thought their adult child had just one gun, which they believed she had sold.
“Her parents felt she should not own weapons … they were under the impression that when she sold the one weapon that she did not own anymore,” Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake said.
The school shooter Audrey Hale lived in the house with her parents. Ben Hendren for the New York Post Audrey Hale was a former student of the school where she gunned down six Monday. Ben Hendren for the New York Post Hale’s parents told investigators they knew of only one gun and believed their child had sold it. Houston Cofield
“As it turned out, she had been hiding several weapons within the house.”
Hale’s mother, Norma Hale, had posted about the need to “keep guns out of schools” on social media and was a devout Christian , according to neighbors.
Follow The Post’s coverage of the school shooting in Nashville
Investigators recovered a stockpile of guns and a manifesto written by Hale in the home. Ben Hendren for the New York Post Police do not believe any of the victims were targeted. Ben Hendren for the New York Post Cops do believe Hale targeted the specific Christian academy she once attended. Ben Hendren for the New York Post Police raided the home shortly after the horrific school shooting. Ben Hendren for the New York Post
Cops also recovered a manifesto written by Hale in the home, as well as detailed maps of The Covenant School where the shooter was once a student.
Neighbors told The Post that police broke down the home’s front door before the raid and used “flash grenades” to storm the residence.
The images taken by a Post photographer show the front door and a back window boarded up with wood, as shattered glass remains on the lawn.
Neighbors described Hale’s mother as a religious person. Ben Hendren for the New York Post Hale shot and killed three 9-year-olds in addition to three school staff members. Ben Hendren for the New York Post Neighbors said police used flash grenades to storm the home. AP
Police have not announced a motive in the mass shooting, but believe the school was targeted as Hale was a student there at one point years ago.
Asked whether Hale being transgender may have played a factor in the slaughter, Drake said it was under investigation.
It’s unclear whether Hale identified as a man or woman — cops referred to her using female pronouns, though she used male pronouns and the name Aiden on some social media accounts.
Investigators discovered four guns inside the home, in addition to the three guns found at the scene of the school shooting. AP Hale’s mother posted about the need to keep guns out of schools on social media. Ben Hendren for the New York Post
They do not believe Hale targeted the victims, however, and instead shot indiscriminately at anyone she encountered.
The victims have been identified as Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs and William Kinney, all 9, as well as custodian Mike Hill, 61, substitute teacher Cynthia Peak, 61, and headmaster Katherine Koonce, 60.
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