Covenant shooter writings won’t be released to public, judge rules

A Tennessee judge ruled Thursday that the writings of the Covenant School shooter will not be made public.

“When there is a pending or contemplated criminal investigation, Tennessee courts have determined that unfettered access to every record at any time does not serve to uphold the system of justice that we all depend upon to ensure that the criminal legal system and investigations remain fair and impartial for every involved person,” Judge I’Ashea Myles of Davidson County Chancery Court wrote in her ruling.

“Therefore, the right to unencumbered access to public records was tempered by certain exceptions which serve to keep certain information from disclosure as the risk of harm from disclosure is outweighed by the public’s right to know,” she added.

The ruling comes a year after the parents of Covenant shooter Audrey Hale transferred legal ownership of the writings to the parents of Covenant students, who argued the writings were protected under copyright law.

In her decision, Myles said releasing Hale’s writings, journals, art, photos, and videos “would violate and conflict with the exclusive federal rights granted to copyright owners.”

Hale, who killed three 9-year-olds and three adults in March 2023 at the Christian school in Nashville, left behind at least 20 journals, a suicide note, and a memoir, the Associated Press reported.

Several groups sued for the release of the materials in the wake of the shooting, including a Tennessee gun rights group, state media outlets, the National Police Association, and Tennessee state Sen. Todd Gardenhire, a Republican.

“We keep hearing this phrase, ‘We don’t want someone speaking from the grave,” Douglas R. Pierce, a lawyer for the National Police Association, said in April. He added that Hale “is not going to do anything to anyone else now, but we can learn valuable lessons from those documents.”

Covenant families argued that the release of the materials could traumatize the families of the victims and lead to copycat crimes — which Myles called a matter “of grave concern.”

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Some of Hale’s writings were leaked to conservative commentator Steven Crowder last year. Last month, the Tennessee Star, one of the parties who filed suit, published several more writings.

The ruling is likely to be appealed.