The school shooter who brutally slaughtered six people had been plotting the attack for months and studied other murderers, new evidence reveals.
Police have confirmed that Audrey Hale had jotted down intricate details of their sickening plan in a diary for months before the massacre.
On the morning of March 27, the 28-year-old armed themselves with two assault rifles and a handgun, before storming a private Christian school they had once attended in US city of Nashville, Tennessee.
Hale fired 152 rounds of ammunition over 14 minutes, mercilessly murdering six people.
Students Hallie Scruggs, William Kinney and Evelyn Dieckhaus, all aged 9, were killed alongside their headmistress Dr Katherine Koonce, 60, substitute teacher Cynthia Peak, 61, and custodian Mike Hill, 61.
While an official motive has not yet been released, officials have now shed light on what may have been going on inside Hale’s psyche leading up to the attack.
Police also believe the shooter had been planning the attack for months, and had also been studying the actions of other mass murderers, thanks to Hale’s detailed journals.
“In the collective writings by Hale found in her vehicle in the school parking lot, and others later found in the bedroom of her home, she documented, in journals, her planning over a period of months to commit mass murder at The Covenant School,” the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said on Monday.
“The writings remain under careful review by the MNPD and the FBI’s Behavioural Analysis Unit based in Quantico, Virginia.
“The motive for Hale’s actions has not been established and remains under investigation by the Homicide Unit in consultation with the FBI’s Behavioural Analysis Unit.
“It is known that Hale considered the actions of other mass murderers.”
Police also provided further details on the timeline of the shooting and the actions taken by the officers first on the scene.
“The investigation shows that Hale fired a total of 152 rounds (126 5.56 rifle rounds and 26 nine millimetre rounds) from the time she shot her way into the school until she was killed by police,” they said.
“Two officers fired on Hale. Officer Rex Engelbert discharged a total of four 5.56 rounds from his rifle; Officer Michael Collazo discharged a total of four rounds from his department-issued nine-millimetre pistol.
“Scores of police personnel from a number of components responded to the Covenant call last Monday.
“The department’s Professional Wellness Section is conducting critical incident debriefings, including daily wellness checks, for involved personnel.
“The MNPD’s Homicide Unit is leading the investigation into the murders of the six victims.
“The Cold Case Unit is working with the TBI in the investigation of the fatal police shooting of Hale.”
In an effort to strengthen the safety of schools in the state, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee announced a proposal on Monday to have an armed guard at every school.
Lee estimated the budget to employ and train guards would be US$140 million ($222m). The governor also announced that they would dedicate US$8m towards mental health services in schools.
“There is nothing more important than our students safely returning home each day,” he said.
“As Tennessee grieves the tragic loss of six precious lives in the Covenant shooting, we are taking additional actions to significantly boost safety measures at every school with highly trained guards, physical security enhancements and mental health resources.
“With this funding we’re taking the burden off teachers and school and districts.
“There is no excuse to not have a guard at every school.”
Police have said that Hale was under a doctor’s care for an undisclosed “emotional disorder” but have not stated that there is a link between the medical care and the shooting.
Before the massacre, Averianna Patton, a former basketball teammate of Hale, said they had sent her Instagram messages in which they talked about not wanting to live anymore and said that their family did not know what they were about to do.
Patton claimed she saw the messages at 9.57am local time, less than 20 minutes before police were informed about an attack at the Covenant School.
In their last Instagram message to Patton, Hale asked for forgiveness.
Social media accounts and other sources indicate that Hale identified as a transgender man.
Police also confirmed that Hale had previously attended the school.
As of today, there have been 10,714 gun deaths, and 136 mass shootings in North America this year alone, according to statistics from the Gun Violence Archive.
Guns are also the leading cause of death for children and teens living in the United States, according to Everytown for Gun Safety.
This year, there have been at least 39 incidents of gunfire on school grounds, resulting in 17 deaths and 30 injuries nationally, the organisation reported.
“I never thought when I started my public life that guns would be the number one killer of children in America,” US President, Joe Biden, said on Wednesday after the Nashville shooting. “It’s sick.”