DOJ Won’t Say If It Will Investigate Trans Shooter’s Attack On Christian School As Hate Crime, But We Can Guess The Answer

On Monday, Audrey Hale, a 28-year-old transgender woman, shot and killed six people, including three 9-year-olds, at a Christian school in Nashville, TN. Despite the tragedy, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has not issued a statement, nor confirmed whether the incident is a hate crime. This is surprising, given the department’s previous statements on mass shootings. For instance, in response to a shooting at a Uvalde, Texas elementary school, the DOJ condemned the “act of unspeakable violence,” promising to investigate the matter as a hate crime. The DOJ also issued a similar statement when a gunman killed 10 people at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York.

However, despite the evidence indicating that the Nashville shooting was a “targeted attack” and “premeditated” hate crime against Christians, the DOJ has declined to comment on the matter. Tennessee already passed a law protecting minors from transgender surgeries and chemical castration, which received backlash from transgender activists. Shortly after, a “Trans Day of Vengeance” was planned to occur in Washington, D.C., and online. Moreover, Audrey Hale was a former student of the school and had a “manifesto” delineating the details of her plan. Yet, the DOJ remains adamant about not investigating the incident and ensuring justice for the families of The Covenant School.

Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri has written a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray, urging an investigation into the shooting as a federal hate crime. “Federal law explicitly criminalizes acts of violence against individuals based on religious affiliation as hate crimes,” he wrote, noting that police reports refer to the attack as “targeted” towards Christians.

When shooters’ ideologies correspond to far-right groups, the DOJ exhibits no hesitation in acknowledging the culprits’ motives. For instance, when a gunman killed five people at a gay nightclub in Colorado Springs, the Justice Department promised to “review all available facts of the incident to determine what federal response is warranted” — something it won’t do in Nashville. Similarly, Dylann Roof, a man who killed nine people at a black church in South Carolina, was prosecuted by the DOJ for hate crimes.

It’s concerning that even now, the DOJ refuses to acknowledge this incident as a hate crime and continues to avoid discussing the details surrounding the matter.