The Tennessean recently published stories about the impact of The Covenant School murders. It was a painful, powerful and heartbreaking account shared by those involved. Our hearts go out to the victims of such trauma.

Now that we have a public recounting of the emotional carnage and the dialogue of loss, grief and trauma in the public arena, perhaps it is time Covenant School drops its opposition to the release of the police investigation of the crime.

The school’s legal position stands in decided contrast to the public sharing of the trauma of the shooting victims’ families. On the one hand, there is a public discussion in The Tennessean about the experiences of the people most affected by the shootings. On the other hand, there is opposition by the school to the release of the police investigation into the matter, which police claim is still ongoing nearly a year later. The Tennessee Public Records Act (TPRA) mandates the release of public records with some exceptions. .

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Why aren’t other murder investigations being protected?

This matter has volleyed through the courts since last spring, but it is essential to bring it to a conclusion now. The reason is that the legislature is once again in session. This body has manifested an inimical attitude toward Nashville for several years. We need to have the facts of the police investigation made public so they can make intelligent social policy about gun usage. Without the facts, the legislature could very well create law based on its own perceptions or ideology, which could make things worse.

As citizens, we need to know why a former student went into the school and shot people. The police investigation answers that question, but Covenant School is going to great lengths to keep it private. Interestingly, Metro Legal has joined with them in seeking to keep the police investigation closed. Why might that be the case?

There were 105 murders in Nashville in 2022. In no other murder has Metro Legal sought to prohibit release of the results of a police investigation. There have been crimes committed in and around the public schools of Nashville, and in none of those situations has Metro legal intervened to prevent release of the facts surrounding those crimes. What is going on here? Metro legal has determined one portion of the citizenry is due a level of concern and protection that the remainder of the victims in the city do not receive.

Do wealth and race figure into how this case is being handled?

Covenant School is a private, elite school. Tuition ranges from $7,500 to $17,000 a year. It is also Christian and mandates at least one parent be Christian. Its student body and administration are overwhelmingly white, and it is politically connected.

They are entitled to litigate to keep their in-house secrets to themselves, but what is Metro Legal doing taking sides with them while ignoring the trauma and grief associated with all the other murders in Nashville? Why not also oppose release of those investigations if Metro Legal is so concerned about loss and trauma?

The answer is to be found in the color of one’s skin. Unlike Covenant School, Metro Nashville schools are diverse; most murders in the city are not committed against the wealthy; and finally, there is the matter of political access. Most Nashvillians do not have the political sway that Covenant School does.

One can only surmise that there is a considerable effort taking place to not hear what the accused shooter has to say about the killing spree.

Despite TPRA permitting the release of a closed police investigation, it appears we are looking at a cover-up of the information that is pertinent to what happened. This is alarming in itself. And with another ongoing legislative session, all the facts need to be publicly marshaled to prevent that body from enacting gun laws based only on suppositions about what happened at The Covenant School. Please, let’s just have the facts.

The question remains: Why did the killer shoot up the school? It is a question long overdue for an answer. It is time to let the people of Nashville know.

Joe Ingle is a United Church of Christ minister who resides in Nashville, Tennessee. He is the author of “Too Close to the Flame:  With the Condemned inside the Southern Killing Machine,” which comes out on May 7. 

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Covenant School shooting: It’s time to release records to the public