– Tennessee Star files appeal to cancel Covenant hearing
– Tennessee Star calls Covenant hearing unconstitutional.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The debate surrounding the release of the writings of the shooter at The Covenant School has intensified this week, with the Tennessee Star filing an appeal to halt an upcoming hearing following the leak of several documents.
Davidson County Chancellor I’ashea Myles set a “show-cause” hearing for Monday after receiving inquiries from the media regarding a story published by the Tennessee Star. The news outlet released multiple reports after allegedly obtaining 80 pages of the shooter’s writings from a source close to the investigation.
The Tennessee Star, led by Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy, is one of several petitioners advocating for the disclosure of the shooter’s manifesto in an ongoing legal battle. In response to the leak, Judge Myles scheduled the hearing to investigate why the publication of the documents does not constitute contempt of court.
However, the Tennessee Star has pushed back, asserting that the trial court’s order is “legally and constitutionally flawed on numerous grounds.” The news organization’s attorney argued that the hearing violates Tennessee’s media Shield Law, which safeguards reporters from divulging their information sources.
The Tennessee Star also contends that the judge’s directive contravenes Tennessee’s contempt law and denies Leahy his fundamental due process rights. In an emergency motion filed on Wednesday morning, the news outlet’s attorney urged the judge to cancel the hearing by noon on Thursday. When the request was not granted, an appeal was lodged.
“Mr. Leahy cannot be compelled to participate in a show cause hearing that necessitates the disclosure of ‘any information or the source of any information obtained for publication or broadcast’,” stated the attorney in the appeal. “Such coercion would severely undermine press freedom and newsgathering in general.”
On March 27, 2023, tragedy struck when 28-year-old Audrey Hale gunned down six individuals, including three children, at the Covenant School in Green Hills. The victims were identified as 9-year-olds Evelyn Dieckhaus, Hallie Scruggs, and William Kinney, along with Cynthia Peak, 61; Dr. Katherine Koonce, 60; and Mike Hill, 61.
Following the incident, investigators executed search warrants at Hale’s residence on Brightwood Avenue. Among the items discovered were two shotguns, one in a bedroom closet and another beside a desk in a bedroom. Additionally, a suicide note was found on a desk, along with over 20 journals, a memoir, and a psychiatric medical folder. Hale was reportedly receiving treatment for an “emotional disorder.”
The show-cause hearing is set to convene at 11 a.m. on Monday, June 17.
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– Tennessee Star appeals to cancel Covenant hearing, calls it unconstitutional
– Covenant hearing appeal in Tennessee Star deems process unconstitutional.
