At least 3 children and 3 adults killed in Nashville elementary school shooting

By Aditi Sangal, Elise Hammond, Maureen Chowdhury, Zoe Sottile, Amir Vera, Meg Wagner, Veronica Rocha, Melissa Macaya and Helen Regan, CNN

Updated 7:18 a.m. ET, March 28, 2023
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4:56 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

Police believe the shooter was once a student at Covenant School

Metro Nashville Police officers gather near The Covenant School, on Monday, in Nashville, Tennessee.
Metro Nashville Police officers gather near The Covenant School, on Monday, in Nashville, Tennessee. (Andrew Nelles/The Tennessean/AP)

The 28-year old shooter who killed six people at a private school in Nashville was once a student at the school, according to initial findings from police.

At a Monday press conference, Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake said, "From my initial findings, at one point, she was a student at that school."

He added that he was unsure what year she had attended the school.

Drake did not give the woman's name and said the investigation was ongoing. He said police have identified where she lived in Nashville.

There was a "car nearby that gave us clues" into who she was, he added.

The shooter was killed by police after fatally shooting three adults and three children at Covenant School on Monday.

3:50 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

Biden calls on Congress to pass an assault weapons ban following Nashville shooting

President Joe Biden speaks during the SBA Women's Business Summit at the White House on Monday.
President Joe Biden speaks during the SBA Women's Business Summit at the White House on Monday. (Alex Brandon/AP)

President Joe Biden called the shooting at a Nashville school that killed six people, including three children, "heartbreaking, a family's worst nightmare."

The president, who was speaking at Small Business Administration’s Women’s Business Summit Monday, said more needs to be done to stop gun violence.

“It’s ripping our communities apart," he said.

The shooting took place at the Covenant School, a private Christian elementary school in Nashville that teaches preschool through 6th grade, Nashville police said.

Officials said the shooter was armed with at least two "assault-type" rifles and a handgun.

Biden called on Congress to pass an assault weapons ban, saying we "need to do more to protect our schools."

“It's about time we began to make some more progress," he said.

Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, a Democrat, echoed the president’s remarks, saying he strongly supports "bills to ban assault weapons from civilian use and to close gaps in our background check system.”

He urged lawmakers to come up with a bipartisan solution, but that is extremely unlikely this Congress with a slim Democratic majority in the Senate and a GOP-led House.

Last year the Senate passed the “Bipartisan Safer Communities Act,” the first major piece of legislation to address gun violence since 1994. The legislation fell short of what some Democrats had hoped for, including their long hope of banning assault weapons.

Watch here:

CNN's Nicky Robertson contributed reporting to this post.

2:48 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

"It happened so fast": Witness describes police response to shooting

From CNN's Carroll Alvarado

A woman working across the street from the Covenant School described watching the police arrive at the scene of the Monday morning mass shooting in Nashville.

Jozen Reodica, who works at Shearwater Health across the street from the Covenant School, told CNN she realized something was wrong when she saw several police cars arrive at the scene.

The police “started to close down the roads," she said. "It happened so fast."

Reodica shot video of police escorting students out of the school, which is a private Christian elementary school. The students were holding hands and walking in a line, according to Reodica.

Three students and three adults were killed in the shooting, according to police. The shooter, a 28-year old woman, was killed by police at the scene.

2:33 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

White House calls on Congress to take action and pass gun safety legislation

From CNN's DJ Judd

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre speaks about the shooting in Nashville during the daily press briefing at the White House on Monday.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre speaks about the shooting in Nashville during the daily press briefing at the White House on Monday. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters)

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called on lawmakers — including Republicans — to pass gun safety legislation in the wake of the Nashville school shooting that resulted in six dead Monday.

She pointed to President Joe Biden's remarks calling for Congress to address gun violence during his State of the Union address last month.

“How many more children have to be murdered before Republicans in Congress will step up and act to pass the assault weapons ban, to close loopholes in our background check system, or to require the safe storage of guns? We need to do something,” she said. 

Jean-Pierre said Biden will address the Nashville shooting during scheduled remarks at the White House Monday afternoon. She said the president has been briefed on the shooting and is in contact with officials.

A female shooter was killed by police after killing three students and three adults at the Covenant School, according to Nashville Police Department spokesperson Don Aaron.

Any legislation to pass comprehensive gun legislation faces an uphill battle in a divided Congress, while the Republican-controlled House has shown little interest in gun control legislation.

Still, Jean-Pierre said Biden would continue to call on Congress to take action, adding Biden “has done almost as much as he can from the federal level to show how important this is to him.”

2:18 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

First responders tried to provide life-saving efforts to those who "had viable signs of life" 

From CNN's Michelle Watson  

Nashville Fire Department's Kendra Loney speaks during a press conference on Monday.
Nashville Fire Department's Kendra Loney speaks during a press conference on Monday. (WSMV)

The Nashville Fire Department tried to provide life-saving efforts during Monday's shooting incident at Covenant School, Covenant Presbyterian Church, authorities said Monday during a news conference.  

"Our crews were able to be on scene to pull out those that had viable signs of life. Those that were still showing the option to be saved," Nashville Fire Department's Kendra Loney said.  

A reunification site was set up soon after with "mental health specialists and professionals" for the families and students, Loney added.  

On a typical day, there's about 200 students and about 40 to 50 staff members inside the school, Don Aaron with the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said.

It's unclear how many people were in the school Monday.  

"There is video from the school that we are viewing now to try to learn exactly how all of this happened," Aaron said.  

Officials said another update on the incident is expected sometime soon. Aaron said they'd tweet when the next update is expected.   

5:43 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

Police say shooter was 28-year old Nashville woman

From CNN's Andi Babineau

A police officer walks by an entrance to Covenant School in Nashville on Monday.
A police officer walks by an entrance to Covenant School in Nashville on Monday. (John Amis/AP)

The shooter who killed six at a Nashville private school on Monday morning was a 28-year-old woman, according to police. Authorities previously said she appeared to be a teenager.

"3 students & 3 adult staff members from Covenant School were fatally shot by the active shooter, who has now been identified as a 28-year-old Nashville woman," police said in a tweet.

In a news conference earlier, a spokesperson for the police department had said the deceased shooter appeared to be a teenager. 

The woman has still not been identified by name. Police have not shared a possible motive for the shooting or identified a connection between the woman and the school.

3:41 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

"Our entire city stands with you": Local officials give condolences to those killed in school shooting

Local officials say they are standing with the six people killed Monday in a shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee.

Nashville Mayor John Cooper said in a tweet his "heart goes out to the families of the victims" and thanked officials for their response.

Rep. Andy Ogles, who represents Tennessee's 5th Congressional District which includes the Covenant School, said he is "devastated by the tragedy," in a statement on Twitter.

Ogles said as a father, "I am utterly heartbroken by this senseless act of violence," according to the statement.

He said he will monitor the situation and is working with local officials.

Readers were quick to remind Ogles of a photo he posted on Facebook in Christmas 2022 when he was Mayor of Maury County that showed him and his family standing in front of a Christmas tree holding weapons, with the caption “The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference – they deserve a place of honor with all that’s good.”

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, who represents parts of Nashville and West Tennessee, also tweeted that her office is in contact with officials at all levels.

1:47 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

First lady Jill Biden: "Our children deserve better"

First lady Jill Biden reacted to the Nashville school shooting while at an event in Washington, DC, on Monday.

"We just learned about another shooting in Tennessee. A school shooting. And I am truly without words. Our children deserve better. And we stand, all of us, we stand with Nashville in prayer," the first lady said.
9:36 p.m. ET, March 27, 2023

There have been at least 130 mass shooting in the US this year

From CNN's Elizabeth Joseph

A group prays with a child outside the reunification center at the Woodmont Baptist church after a school shooting on Monday, in Nashville, Tennessee.
A group prays with a child outside the reunification center at the Woodmont Baptist church after a school shooting on Monday, in Nashville, Tennessee. (John Bazemore/AP)

Following Monday morning's shooting at the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, is there have been at least 130 mass shooting in the US so far in 2023, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive.

The Gun Violence Archive, like CNN, defines a mass shooting as one in which at least four people are shot, excluding the shooter. 

Three students and three adults were killed at the Covenant School. The shooter, who was identified as a 28-year-old Nashville woman, was also killed in a shootout with police.

Last year, the US hit 100 mass shootings on March 19, per the GVA. The previous year, 2021, saw a late March date as well. From 2018 to 2020, the country didn't reach 100 mass shootings until May.

This post has updated with the latest figures from the Gun Violence Archive.