Conservative news site, The Tennessee Star, may be in legal trouble for publishing leaked pages of the Covenant School assailant’s journals. The Star is a plaintiff in an ongoing lawsuit to compel Nashville Police to release the writings, left by the person who shot and killed three students and three staff members at the school last March.
The presiding judge has called a hearing to determine if the leak puts The Tennessee Star in contempt of court.
During a hearing in April, Judge I’Ashea Myles condemned the first leak and warned about the consequences of a second.
“The leaked documents, again, were against the rule of law. If anyone hearing the sound of my voice, listening or watching, intends on releasing anything else that they have, this court will not take too kindly to that,” she said.
The Tennessee Star, its parent company, and editor-in-chief Michael Leahy have been called to court next week to answer for the leak.
Paul Krog, attorney for the Star, told WPLN News that he did not have comment on the upcoming hearing. He has filed a motion to be excused from it. According to court documents, he learned of the leak from a friend not involved in the case and does not have insider information about the Star’s reporting.
For defying Myles’ order, the Star could pay a hefty fine, and staffers could possibly face jail time.
Nashville Police spokesperson Don Aaron told WPLN News that the department is very concerned.
“We want to know how this happened and who is involved. We are taking steps to ascertain such,” Aaron said.
Metro Nashville Police Department’s investigation into the last leak ended in December, after exhausting all avenues of questioning. Police determined that the three leaked photos were taken by two detectives in the Specialized Investigation Division, or SID, immediately after discovering the journals in the assailant’s car.
A former detective who possessed the images as part of his official duties declined to be interviewed by police. The department said it cannot compel statements or cooperation from former employees.
A retired officer, who had been a part of MNPD’s equivalent of internal affairs, alleged last month that the first investigation had been mishandled. WPLN News received an unredacted copy of the full, 61-page complaint filed by former Lt. Garet Davidson, in which he alleged that MNPD leadership prevented his team from gathering facts before interviewing detectives from the SID.
Davidson also obtained a copy of an FBI memo from its Behavioral Analysis Unit, or BAU, which advised MNPD not to release the journals for three reasons: It could inspire future mass shootings; it does not provide comfort or answers to victims; and it could re-enforce false narratives.
“Ultimately, offenders commit these attacks for multiple, varied reasons, many of which the offenders themselves do not fully grasp or comprehend,” the memo said. “Additionally, there will often be a tendency to dismiss the attacker as mentally ill, given the style and lack of coherence often seen in these writings. This will further permeate the false narrative that the majority of attackers are mentally ill. BAU-1’s research has shown this to not be the case.”
The Tennessee Star joined the consolidated lawsuit last year. Soon after the leak was published Monday, Judge Myles scheduled a hearing for the Star and its owners to answer why the publication of the leak “does not violate the Orders of this Court subjecting them to contempt proceedings and sanctions.”
The hearing is scheduled for Monday of next week.
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