Audrey Hale Manifesto Release Raises Major Concerns From LGBTQ+ Groups

Calls for police to release the "manifesto" that authorities say was written ahead of Monday's Nashville school shooting has prompted concern among LGBTQ+ groups, who caution against the publication of such a document.

While many details remain to be unveiled about the massacre at The Covenant School this week, police have identified the shooter as 28-year-old Audrey Hale. On Monday, Hale, armed with two assault-style weapons—a rifle and a pistol—as well as a handgun, fatally shot three children and three staff members at the school before being killed by police.

Speaking at a press conference hours after the shooting, Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake, who said the shooter identified as transgender, confirmed that officials were in possession of a "manifesto," a map detailing how the incident would take place and writings "that pertain to this date, the actual incident."

Some conservatives, like Tennessee Republican Representative Tim Burchett, have called for the release of the document, arguing that doing so would give the public critical information about the perpetrator's state of mind.