Two of the victims of Monday’s college capturing in Nashville have been longtime household mates of Tennessee Gov. Invoice Lee and his spouse, the governor shared in a video deal with Tuesday evening.
Lee claimed that Cynthia Peak, 61, was scheduled to have dinner with Tennessee’s first woman, Maria Lee, on the governor’s mansion on Monday evening—however by no means made it. As a substitute, she was killed whereas substitute educating at The Covenant Faculty alongside 5 others, together with three kids. He additionally named the varsity’s late headmistress, Katherine Koontz, saying the three girls have been mates for years.
“Maria awoke this morning with out one in all her greatest mates,” the governor stated in a video posted to Twitter.
“Cindy and Maria and Katherine Koonce have been all academics on the similar college and had been household mates for many years,” Lee added. He notably didn’t point out gun management or some other legislative motion particularly, merely saying that it stays too quickly to speak, however “we’ll act.”
“There’ll come a time to ask how an individual can do that,” Lee stated. “There’ll come a time to debate and debate coverage, however this isn’t a time for hate or rage—that won’t resolve or heal.”
The bloodshed started round 10:13 a.m. Monday morning when the shooter, later recognized as 28-year-old Audrey Hale, shot via one of many college’s locked doorways and started firing seemingly at random.
Police have stated that Hale, a former scholar who wrote a “manifesto” and possessed detailed maps of the varsity, could have been motivated by “resentment” about being pressured to attend Covenant—however harassed that the precise motive stays unclear.
Hale, who police say recognized as transgender, was apparently being handled for an emotional dysfunction earlier than finishing up the capturing. A member of the family additionally informed The Day by day Beast that Hale “comparatively just lately ” began utilizing he/him pronouns.
The trio of nine-year-olds killed within the capturing—Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs and William Kinney—all seemed to be random targets, authorities stated. Along with Peak and Koonce, one different workers member was shot lifeless: college custodian Michael Hill, a beloved father-of-seven who college students affectionately known as “Huge Mike.”