Woman opens fire at US elementary school, many people killed

Hoai Linh• DNUM_CIZADZCACD 06:53

A 28-year-old woman armed with a handgun and an assault rifle opened fire at an elementary school in Nashville, Tennessee, killing six people, including three children.

Photo: Reuters

According to Reuters and The Guardian, police shot and killed the suspect. Initial reports said the gunman was a former student at The Covenant School, and the motive for the gun violence is currently unknown.

Nashville police received the first call about the shooting at 10:13 a.m. on March 27, police spokesman Don Aaron said. The suspect entered the school through a side entrance and went from the first floor to the second floor, firing multiple shots. The shooting occurred in a hallway, not in a classroom. Two officers from a five-person team shot and killed the attacker, and she was pronounced dead at 10:27 a.m.

Nashville Police Chief John Drake said at a press conference that evening that the suspect was Audrey Hale, 28, a Nashville resident and one-time student at the school. Drake said the subject was transgender but did not provide other details.

Three students, all 9 years old, died after being taken to Monroe Carell Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt. Three other school staff members also died.

Photo: The Guardian

According to the Gun Violence Archive group, this is the 128th shooting this year in the US.

Mass shootings have become more common in the United States in recent years, but female shooters are highly unusual. According to the nonprofit research center The Violence Project, since 1966, only four of the 191 mass shootings were carried out by women.

Speaking about the shooting, US President Joe Biden called on Congress to once again pass more gun reform laws. He said: "We must do more to stop the gun violence that is tearing apart our communities. It is tearing at the soul of America."