Newly released writings from Audrey Hale, the 28-year-old responsible for the tragic 2023 mass shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville, reveal deeply troubling insights into her mindset before the attack that left six people dead, including three children.
Authorities disclosed that Hale left behind over 1,000 pages of handwritten journals and notes, which chronicle her growing animosity toward society, racial hatred, and internal struggles with gender identity. The writings were made public as part of the Nashville Metropolitan Police Department’s final report, which also described the shooter’s intent to have the materials preserved and studied.
Hale, a transgender individual who was born female but identified as male, reportedly filled 16 notebooks with increasingly erratic and hateful entries. Among her writings, she expressed a desire to commit acts of mass violence, specifically targeting white individuals and children.
“Being white sucks, but being black is so cool. Black people should rule. White people should fall,” Hale wrote in one of the notebooks. “I hate the American people… It’s a land full of idiots.”
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Police say Hale’s self-loathing was deeply intertwined with her radicalized worldview. She wrote extensively about her hatred of teachers, white people, and the U.S. itself, along with laments over not receiving gender-affirming care at a younger age.
“I hated being raised a girl,” she wrote. “I wish I had been given puberty blockers earlier. By the time I found out, I felt it was too late.”
The writings also include references to infamous killers such as Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold (Columbine), Jeffrey Dahmer, the DC snipers, and Timothy McVeigh, whom Hale admired and referred to as “gods.” In one journal entry, she claimed to be the reincarnation of Klebold and expressed a desire for similar notoriety.
Her selection of The Covenant School, where she was once a student, was chillingly deliberate. Investigators said Hale believed it to be a vulnerable target and viewed the location as a symbolic backdrop for her own death.
“She considered the school a safe place to carry out the attack and to die,” the final report stated.
On March 27, 2023, Hale entered the Christian elementary school armed with a 9mm carbine. She killed three 9-year-old students and three adults before being fatally shot by responding officers just minutes after the shooting began.
Police confirmed that Hale wanted her writings to be published and used as a blueprint for future mass shooters — a disturbing goal that underscores the calculated nature of the attack. Law enforcement officials and families of the victims have stressed the importance of learning from this tragedy without glorifying the attacker.
As the community continues to mourn, these new revelations only deepen the pain surrounding one of the nation’s most devastating school shootings in recent years.
