The heartbroken mother of the shooter who attacked students and teachers at a Nashville school this week has broken her silence.
Audrey Hale, 28, opened fire at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee on Monday, March 27 - in a violent assault that has left at least three children and three adults dead.
It has been reported that Hale - who was assigned female at birth, but had used a social media account that included the use of the pronouns he/him - was armed with two "assault-style" weapons and a handgun. Law enforcement revealed that Hale had carefully planned the attack, per The Guardian.
Hale had been a former student at the Christian elementary school, with Nashville police chief John Drake stating that a manifesto belonging to Hale indicated that there were going to be shootings at multiple locations, and the school was one of them. He added that investigators believed the shooting stemmed from "some resentment" Hale harbored "for having to go to that school" as a child.
Officers shot and killed Hale at the school when they arrived on the scene - 14 minutes after the first call about the shooting came in.
Hale's mother, Norma Hale, spoke briefly to ABC News in the wake of the traumatic incident, stating that it was "very, very difficult right now" for her family, and that they would appreciate privacy.
"I think I lost my daughter today," she added.
A neighbor of the Hale family also spoke to the outlet, telling them that Hale had been living at home and was deeply religious but was apparently "very nice".
In 2022, Hale graduated from Nashville's Nossi College of Art & Design, with the school's president and CEO Cyrus Vatandoost revealing: "While at our school, she was a talented artist and a good student. Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family, to the victims and their families, and to our city."
On Nossi College's Facebook page, there was a post - which has since been removed - that indicated that Hale had won at least one award for academic performance. "Aside from art, I enjoy binging on video games, watching movies, and playing sports," Hale wrote on a personal website. "There is a child-like part about me that loves to go run to the playground. Animals are my second passion, so I also enjoy spending time with my two cats."
US President Joe Biden has spoken out in the wake of the attack, using the opportunity to call for an assault weapons ban, like many other politicans and public figures have been doing. "We have to do more to stop gun violence ripping our communities apart," the 80-year-old president said at the White House. "It's ripping the soul from this nation."
The director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation David Rausch, said authorities had sent "heartfelt prayers to the families … of these victims." He then added: "Now I know there'll be people who want to criticise us for prayers. That's the way we do that in the south. We believe in prayer and we believe in the power of prayer. So our prayers go out to these families."
Our thoughts go out to the victims' families and anybody affected by this tragedy.
