Nashville school shooting: Heartbreaking photos of mass shooting victims

The victims of the Nashville school shooting have been identified, with heartbreaking images showing a family that has been torn apart.

The shooter who killed six people at an elementary school in America on Tuesday morning (AEST) has been identified as Audrey Hale.

Chief of Police John Drake named the suspect as Audrey Hale, a 28-year-old man, who the officer later said identified as transgender.

The shooter had opened fire inside the private Christian elementary school in Nashville, killing three children and three adults. Police received an active shooter call at 10.13am local time.

Heartbreaking photos of mass shooting victims

Nashville police identified the six victims of the Covenant School shooting, which includes the private Christian academy’s headmistress.

Officials identified the three slain students as Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, all age 9.

Nine-year-old Hallie Scruggs was identified as one of the victims. Facebook/Chad Scruggs

Katherine Koonce, the headmistress of the school, was identified as one of the victims. Covenant School

The three faculty members killed were Cynthia Peak and Mike Hill, both 61, and school head Katherine Koonce, 60.

Hallie Scruggs, one of three children slain in the sickening school shooting, was the 9-year-old child of Chad Scruggs, the senior pastor at Covenant Presbyterian Church,

The community is in mourning over the tragedy that befell the small private school, which teaches students in pre-K through 6th grade and only has about 200 students enrolled, according to its website.

The Scruggs family are seen in this undated photo. Facebook/Chad Scruggs

Nashville shooting victim Mike Hill.

Ms Koonce, an educator of more than 23 years, joined the school as the headmistress in 2016. Mr Hill was identified as a custodian, and Ms Peak was a substitute teacher.

The school focuses its curriculum on biblical theology, where students take classes about the bible along with standard education courses, with the school motto being “Shepherding Hearts, Empowering Minds, Celebrating Childhood.”

Officers rush to the scene

Officers heard gunshots on the second floor and rushed to a lobby-type area where they came across the 28-year-old Nashville resident, who had two assault rifles and a handgun.

Police said Hale once attended the school. A LinkedIn profile listed Audrey Hale as an illustrator and graphic designer, with pronouns listed as he/him.

Audrey Hale, the shooter behind the school shooting.

The suspect was identified as a 28-year-old who once attended the school, authorities said. Picture: Getty Images

Hale, who had also started to go by the name Aiden, was shot dead by police on site at 10.27am.

A TikTok account under the name iam_aiden10 which linked to other social media associated with Hale had a final video posted of a person’s shadow, which showed them bouncing a basketball and then a basketball net, an apparent tribute to a friend who had passed.

On the screen, it displayed the words: “For Syd. I look up the sky is bright. It’s a beautiful day. I wish you were here …”

A car was located near the Covenant School, where the 14-minute shooting spree took place. It helped provide investigators clues as to the shooter’s identity, Metro Nashville Chief of Police John Drake said at a press conference.

A neighbour to the last address listed for Hale told The Post police were on the scene and the whole area had been blocked off.

Children arrive at Woodmont Baptist Church to be reunited with their families after a mass shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee. Picture: Getty Images

Police had earlier confirmed the suspect was a Nashville resident.

In online profiles, Hale is listed as having attended the Nossi College of Art and most recently worked as a shopper for Shipt, a grocery delivery service.

Another local said they had seen the shooter yesterday and the shooter lived at home with his mother Norma, who works at a church nearby, and father Ron, who is self-employed.

The school is based in Nashville’s Green Hills neighbourhood.

They described Hale as reserved and spoke very little and said he had a brother in law school in Brooklyn.

The source told The Post: “The parents are very nice people, especially Norma. We’re just shocked.”

- with the New York Post

Originally published as Nashville school shooting: Heartbreaking photos of mass shooting victims