US: 6 Dead After Female Shooter Opens Fire at Nashville Grade School

While mass shootings are becoming more common in the United States, female shooters are rare

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In another ghastly incident, a female shooter killed three children and three adults at a Christian grade school Monday in the southern U.S. state of Tennessee, according to authorities.

Police shot and killed the suspected shooter, who they initially said was a teenager. Authorities later determined the suspect was 28 years old.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, Don Aaron, said the shooter was armed with at least two semi-automatic rifles and a handgun.

He said police began receiving calls at 10:13 a.m. about a shooter at The Covenant School, a private Presbyterian school in Nashville.

Officers who arrived at the scene could hear gunfire coming from the school’s second floor, according to Aaron.

US Attorney General Merrick Garland has been briefed on the school shooting in Nashville Monday morning that left six dead, according to a Justice Department spokesperson.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the Biden administration has been in contact with the Justice Department and local officials about the investigation.

Special agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives responded to the scene of the shooting, the Justice Department said, and are assisting local partners.

Police described the victims as three students and three adult staff members. They said besides those six people, no one else was shot.

Police escorted the other students to a nearby church, where parents were told to gather.

The Covenant School has about 200 students from pre-school to sixth grade, according to its website.

“In a tragic morning, Nashville joined the dreaded, long list of communities to experience a school shooting,” Nashville Mayor John Cooper tweeted.

“My heart goes out to the families of the victims. Our entire city stands with you,” he wrote.

While mass shootings are becoming more commonplace in the United States, female shooters are rare.