Judge sets hearing on alleged leak of information about Nashville school shooter to conservative media outlet

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee judge reviewing a conservative media outlet's public records case involving a Nashville elementary school shooter has ordered the organization to appear in court after it published stories about similar documents which would have been disclosed to them. On Monday, Nashville's chancellor set a June 17 hearing for Star News Digital Media and editor-in-chief Michael Leahy to explain why their recent work on the deadly Covenant school shooting did not violate court orders regarding sealed records that could subject them to contempt proceedings. and sanctions. The Tennessee Star responded in an article Tuesday that it had not published any leaked images or documents, only some information from them.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee judge has ordered a conservative media organization to appear in court for publishing details of allegedly leaked documents about a 2023 Nashville school shooting, while the media outlet sues to the same type of documents be disclosed to the public.

On Monday, Nashville Chancellor I'Ashea Myles set a June 17 hearing for Star News Digital Media and Editor-in-Chief Michael Leahy to explain why their recent work on The Covenant School shooter did not violate the court orders that could subject them to contempt proceedings. and sanctions. She cited the “alleged release of certain purported documents and information” under seal with the judge in the public records case.

The Tennessee Star, a Star News publication, says the assertion that the Star violated a court order is inaccurate. In part, he explained in a post published Tuesday that he had not published any of the leaked images or documents — only some of the information they contained.

“This could raise First Amendment issues,” said Deborah Fisher, executive director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government.

The hearing could highlight conflicting arguments not only over the First Amendment's protection of the media, but also over the extent to which judges can control conduct in their cases.

Myles wrote that she learned of the Tennessee Star stories during a media call seeking her comment on their stories citing leaked documents.

In the public records lawsuit, plaintiffs include media outlets, a gun rights group, a law enforcement nonprofit and Tennessee state Sen. Todd Gardenhire . Star News Digital Media is also suing the FBI in federal court to obtain release of the documents.

And while the city of Nashville argued it was not required to release the documents during an active police investigation, the plaintiffs countered that no meaningful criminal investigation was underway since the shooter is dead ; Audrey Hale was killed by the police. It doesn't matter that the police investigation is officially still open, say the plaintiffs' lawyers.

The shooter who killed three 9-year-olds and three adults in March 2023 at Covenant, a private Christian school, left behind at least 20 journals, a suicide note and an unpublished memoir, according to court filings. Despite the ongoing lawsuits, they had already been leaked.

A few pages from a newspaper were leaked to a conservative commentator who posted them on social media in November. Part of the interest in the cases comes from the fact that the shooter, who police say was female at birth, may be a transgender man.

Nashville police said they “exhausted all available investigative avenues” when investigating the leak last year. They noted that a former police detective who had footage from the newspaper had declined interview requests, and the department said it “did not have the ability to demand statements or cooperation from former employees.

The police department sent its leak investigation report to the Nashville District Attorney's Office, whose spokesperson said there was no decision yet on what, if any, action to take . Police have refused to release the report until now, calling it an open case.

After the Star's report in recent weeks, police said in a statement that they “are concerned about the alleged leak and we, like others, would like to know where it came from.”

The judge overseeing the public records case expressed concern about possible leaks. In her papers filed in February, she said she had ordered the parties not to directly quote or reproduce documents disclosed in the case, threatening sanctions, including contempt of court, for any “efforts to usurping” court orders by the parties, lawyers or third parties involved. .

Last year, police initially announced plans to release the shooter's writings once the investigation was complete, which police said could be next month. Since then, a group of Covenant School parents have joined the lawsuit, arguing that none of the documents should ever be released. They say the shooter's writings could retraumatize their children and inspire imitators.

The parent group won ownership rights to the shooter's writings and threatened in court to protect them and sue anyone who published them.

At a hearing in April, a city attorney said writings found in the shooter's car could be released without compromising the investigation.

A lawyer representing Covenant, meanwhile, argued that a different law prohibiting disclosure of information, records or plans related to school security could apply to all of the shooter's writings if it were interpreted in a broad sense.

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