Tennessee School Safety News

TENNESSEE

• 5/28/24 - Teen shot, killed day after graduating high school - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - An 18-year-old boy was arrested and charged with criminal homicide after he allegedly shot and killed a recent high school graduate with an AR-15-style rifle he thought was unloaded, according to an arrest affidavit.

• 5/14/24 - One in custody after stolen gun found at West High School, Knoxville police say - KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - West High School was placed on lockdown Tuesday afternoon while the Knoxville Police Department investigated a reported threat, KPD Communications Manager Scott Erland told WVLT News.

• 5/13/24 - Teen arrested after 3 guns, ammo found in backpack at school - MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A teen was arrested and charged after weapons were found in a backpack at Raleigh Egypt High School Monday morning, police say.

• 5/6/24 - New Tennessee law strips away driving privileges for minors who threaten mass violence in schools - Law enforcement, prosecutors and educators say they are seeing more kids making fake threats against East Tennessee schools.

• 4/26/24 - 7-year-old brings gun to school in backpack - MEMPHIS, Tenn. - A handgun was found in the backpack of a 7-year-old boy at school Friday morning, according to the Memphis Police Department (MPD). 

• 4/20/24 - Tennessee teacher arrested after bringing guns to preschool and threatening to shoot colleague - Sheneca Cowart faces multiple felony gun charges following the incident at The Academy of McCrory Lane on Thursday.

• 4/9/24 - Tennessee Senate advances bill to arm teachers a year after deadly Nashville school shooting - Republican lawmakers in Tennessee have cleared a significant hurdle toward permitting certain trained teachers and faculty who haven’t worked in law enforcement carry handguns on school grounds

• 3/25/24 - Tennessee House passes bill to increase penalty for school violence threats - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — A bill that would increase the penalty for making a threat of mass violence against a Tennessee school took an important step forward on Monday.

• 3/24/24 - Timeline: The Covenant School shooting and the dramatic year that followed - Following the March 27, 2023 school shooting, Nashville looks back on a year of hope and challenges.

• 3/21/24 - Student tries to bring weapon inside of Overton High School, police say - MEMPHIS, Tenn. - A student is still on the run after he tried to bring a weapon inside of a Memphis high school, the Memphis Police Department (MPD) said.

• 2/8/24 - Two teens identified in shooting at a Nashville middle school parking lot - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Two teens were killed in what police said was an "apparent targeted shooting" on Thursday night outside of a Nashville middle school.

• 1/28/24 - Covenant School shooter case back in trial court following four month delay - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Attorneys in the Covenant School shooter’s writing case will be heading back into court Monday.

• 1/26/24 - TBI issues endangered child alert for teen who may be armed with weapon - TBI officials said 16-year-old Donovan Smith has a known medical condition and believed to be without his medication.

• 12/27/23 - Covenant School shooting was deadliest K-12 school shooting this year, data says - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — There were 344 kindergarten through 12th grade school shootings this year, according to the K-12 School Shooting Database, which is a 12% increase compared to last year. However, the majority of the shootings were more isolated, targeted attacks instead of “mass shootings.”

• 12/24/23 - Middle TN 2023: The Covenant School shooting - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The Nashville community was shattered on March 27 after an armed intruder shot through a glass door and entered The Covenant School in Green Hills, leading to six deaths.

• 12/22/23 - 'Hoax' threat to Nashville high school prompts massive police presence, scene clear - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — Police are investigating a phone threat to Hume-Fogg Academic High School on Broadway.

• 12/14/23 - MPD responded to over 300 school fight calls so far this year; rise in school violence after COVID pandemic - MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Increased fighting in schools across America since the COVID-19 pandemic has parents so concerned they are transferring their children away from public schools or homeschooling.

• 12/8/23 - Man brings gun to ‘shoot up’ school, police say - MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) - Memphis Police Department has arrested and charged a man they say threatened to shoot up a charter school.

• 11/6/23 - Excerpts From Nashville School Shooter’s Writings Are Published Online - The publication of the apparent excerpts by a conservative commentator enraged the parents of surviving students, who have been fighting to keep the writings from ever becoming public.

• 10/30/23 - Union City 8th grader charged with possession of a weapon on school property - A Union City Middle School student was taken into custody just before classes were dismissed today and charged with possession of a weapon on school property.

• 10/20/23 - Two hospitalized after shooting near RePublic High - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Two people were hospitalized after a reported shooting near a Nashville high school, Metro Nashville Police said Thursday.

• 9/27/23 - 2 injured, Whitehaven High School on lockdown after shooting near school campus - The Memphis Fire Department said two people were taken to the hospital after a shooting across the street from Whitehaven High School

• 9/22/23 - Student found with gun at McGavock High School - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A gun was confiscated from a student at McGavock High School in Donelson Friday morning.

• 9/9/23 - Student charged, expelled after threat of mass violence - HARTSVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - A student was expelled and charged after allegedly threatening mass violence at Trousdale County High School.

• 8/23/23 - Gun found in students backpack following a fight at Kenwood High School Wednesday - CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A gun was found in a students backpack Wednesday morning following a fight at Kenwood High School.

• 8/18/23 - Jewish school shooting suspect booked into Shelby County jail - MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The suspect accused of firing shots outside of a Memphis Jewish school has been booked into the Shelby County jail weeks after the shooting.

• 8/14/23 - High school student arrested for bringing loaded gun to school - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — A 16-year-old high school student arrested Monday is accused of bringing a loaded gun on campus.

• 8/4/23 - Start of school year in Hamblen County marred by threat arrest - HAMBLEN COUNTY, Tenn. (WATE) — The Hamblen County Sheriff’s Office has charged a student for a threat made at a Hamblen County School earlier this week.

• 8/2/23 - TN students who make ‘mass violence’ threats will face one-year expulsion - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - At the beginning of July, a new law went into effect requiring stricter penalties for students who make threats of mass violence against schools.

• 7/31/23 - Memphis Jewish school shooting suspect ID’d as former student - MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WREG) — We are learning more about the man who was shot by police after investigators say he fired shots outside a Jewish school in Memphis.

• 7/25/23 - Nashville school shooter’s writings reignite debate over releasing material written by mass killers - In Tennessee, a request for police to release a school shooter’s private writings has morphed into a complex multiparty legal fight

• 7/10/23 - Students who make school threats will be suspended for one year under new TN law - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Tennessee students who make threats of mass violence against schools will be expelled for one year thanks to a new state law that establishes the act as a zero-tolerance offense in the state.

• 6/12/23 - Amid fight over Covenant school shooting records, medical examiner releases autopsy report - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The former student who shot through the doors of a Nashville Christian elementary school in March and killed three children and three adults died from gunshot wounds to the head, torso and other parts of the body, an autopsy report released Monday showed.

• 4/30/23 - Juvenile charged after social media threat targets prom in Hardin Valley - KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A juvenile has been charged after a threat was made towards the Hardin Valley prom Saturday night, according to Knox County Sheriff’s Office.

• 4/28/23 -  West High School teacher ‘grazed’ after 14-year-old’s gun goes off in school, KPD says - KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - A teacher at West High School was grazed by a bullet or bullet fragment after a gun was fired inside a classroom Friday, Knoxville Police Department officials said.

• 4/20/23 - CSAS student charged after threatening to use firearm at school Thursday - CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — A fight between 2 students at the Chattanooga School for the Arts & Sciences (CSAS) led to one student's arrest, according to the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office.

• 4/15/23 - Police at Atoka school, 9-year-old suspended after post with gun - MEMPHIS, Tenn. – A nine-year-old Atoka Elementary School student allegedly made a social media post brandishing a weapon.

• 4/10/23 - Nashville struggles after mass school shooting, lawmakers expelled from state legislature - Americans are still grappling with the aftermath of the Nashville school shooting and several other mass shootings this year. Mark Strassmann takes a look.

• 4/5/23 - Viral social media threat prompts increased presence of law enforcement at local schools - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Several school systems across the Midstate are going to have an increased law enforcement presence on Thursday after a social media threat resurfaced from several years ago.

• 4/3/23 - Nashville school shooter spent months planning deadly attack, police say - The assailant in last week's deadly shooting at a Nashville school planned the attack over "a period of months," police said Monday. Investigators made that determination after reviewing the shooter's writings, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said in a statement.

• 3/29/23 - What We Know About the Nashville School Shooting - Investigators were still searching for a motive in the killing of six people at the Covenant School. The police said the assailant was being treated for an emotional disorder.

• 3/28/23 - Nashville School Shooting: Police release bodycam footage - Investigators in Tennessee are trying to establish the motives of a 28-year-old who killed three children and three adults in a Nashville elementary school - the latest mass shooting in America, once again re-igniting the debate over gun control.

• 3/27/23 - Nashville school shooting was apparently a targeted attack, police say - A shooter opened fire at a private Christian grade school in Nashville Monday, killing three children and three adults, officials said. The shooter was fatally shot by police at The Covenant School in the city's affluent Green Hills neighborhood, authorities said.

• 2/10/23 -  La Vergne Middle School Student Brings Gun to School - LaVergne Middle School was placed under a Code Red after a student brought a gun to school on Friday morning, a spokesperson with Rutherford County Schools said.

• 1/30/23 - 16-year-old charged after West Collierville Middle School threat - COLLIERVILLE, Tenn. — A 16-year-old from Memphis is facing charges in a threat after West Collierville Middle School was evacuated Monday morning.

• 1/26/23 - Cane Ridge High Student Charged with Carrying a Weapon on School Property - From Metro Police January 25, 2023: A Cane Ridge High School student, Prince Gillenwaters, 18, is charged with attempted aggravated assault and carrying a weapon on school property after he pulled a switchblade knife from his pocket during an argument with another male student and chased the victim, threatening to stab him.

• 1/25/23 - Student charged for bringing weapon to school - Published: Jan. 25, 2023 at 4:41 PM EST

• 1/23/23 - Separate threats to Powell, Carter high schools under investigation by Knox County Sheriff’s Office - KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — The Knox County Sheriff’s Office is investigating separate threats made online to a pair of local high schools, causing a precautionary evacuation at one.

• 1/14/23 - 3 teenagers arrested after threats made to Covington Schools - COVINGTON, Tenn. — A Snapchat post had led to the arrest of three teenagers, according to the Covington Police Department (CPD). Police said that a CPD school resource officer received screenshots of the app that were "disturbing" on Friday and included a possible threat to multiple schools in Covington. 

• 12/29/22 - Critics say Metro Nashville Public Schools are doing nothing for school safety - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — School districts all over the country have scrambled to increase safety against school shooters.

• 12/26/22 - TBI releases school crime, domestic violence studies - The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation recently released two new studies detailing the volume and nature of crime on school campuses and crime identified as having a domestic violence nexus.

• 12/15/22 - ECCA student charged with threat of mass violence on school grounds - Blount County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested a 14-year-old middle school student Thursday, Dec. 15 after he allegedly threatened to commit mass violence on school grounds in a social media post. Another student was also cited on a charge of failing to report the threat to school officials.

• 12/9/22 - Mass school shooting threat puts Cocke County Sheriff’s Office on alert - COCKE COUNTY, Tenn. (WVLT) - The Cocke County Sheriff’s Office said they are “aware of this situation” after a group reportedly threatened several school shootings in the county.

• 11/29/22 - Hillwood student charged with bringing gun to school threatening to ‘shoot up’ school - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - A 10th grader at Hillwood High School has been charged with carrying a gun on school property, Metro Police said.

• 11/10/22 - Jefferson Co. school evacuated following bomb threat, multiple agencies assisting - WHITE PINE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Officials with the White Pine Police Department said there was an active bomb threat at the White Pine School.

• 11/6/22 - Police investigating alleged threat made toward Lebanon Special School District - LEBANON, Tenn. (WKRN) – The Lebanon Police Department is investigating after an apparent threat was made to Lebanon Special School District.

• 11/5/22 - 13-year-old McMinnville boy arrested for school threat - MCMINNVILLE, Tenn. -- A 13-year-old is charged with making a threat of mass violence at a school in McMinnville.

• 10/17/22 - Woman charged after putting loaded gun in elementary student's backpack - A loaded gun was found in an elementary student's backpack — and the person who placed it there was the child's mother.

• 10/2/22 - MNPS teacher said her school failed to warn teachers about student with a gun - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) -- A Metro Nashville Public School teacher spoke out after claiming their school failed to warn teachers about a student with a gun.

• 9/25/22 - Another 16-year-old student brought firearm to Pear Cohn High School - NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Metro Nashville Public Schools has experienced multiple online threats in the last few weeks across Davidson County but the most recent incident is different with an eleventh grader bringing a loaded gun to Pearl Cohn High School.

• 9/24/22 - Viral social media threats to Covington schools leave parents upset - COVINGTON, Tenn. (WMC) - Viral social media threats to Covington schools had parents on high alert.

• 9/23/22 - Covington Police charge 12-year-old with threatening violence at schools Thursday - The Covington Police Department announced Friday night it had charged a 12-year-old with making threats of mass violence on school property.

• 9/23/22 - Pearl Cohn student arrested for bringing loaded gun to school - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF)  — Nashville police said they arrested a 16-year-old student for bringing a loaded pistol inside a fanny pack to school.

• 9/22/22 - Threats of violence against Nashville schools on the rise

• 9/19/22 - 10th-grader caught with loaded gun at school, flees unarmed - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A 10th-grader at Maplewood High School in Nashville is wanted after he was found with a loaded gun in his backpack.

• 9/16/22 - Hillwood High School Student Arrested for Threatening Violence at School - For the fourth time this week, Specialized Investigations Division detectives have arrested a Nashville student for electronically threatening violence. This morning, detectives went to Hillwood High School and arrested a 14-year-old girl for creating a post on Instagram threatening to shoot up the school. The student was identified with the assistance of Instagram. She was taken to Juvenile Court and charged with threatening mass violence at a school and making a false report of an emergency.

• 9/15/22 - Teen charged with threatening mass violence to Nashville high school - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — A teen arrested Thursday morning is accused of creating threats on social media against his Nashville high school.

• 9/9/22 - At least four cited and/or charged for threatening school violence in East TN this school year - "Today's society is not the place to make a threat, especially jokingly, regarding school violence," Sevierville Detective Sergeant Graham Brantley said.

• 9/8/22 - Grundy County student bringing weapon to class sparks conversation about lack of SROs - GRUNDY COUNTY, Tenn. — UPDATE:  The newly appointed Grundy County Sheriff Heath Gunter says 21 people quit by the time he was in office, contributing to the lack of SROs in schools.

• 9/8/22 - Threats of possible violence at Memphis schools spark increased security, concern from parents - MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The terror across Memphis sparked by Wednesday’s deadly shooting spree didn’t end with the suspect’s capture.

• 9/8/22 - After Memphis shooting spree, school leaders call for collaboration to stem violence - MSCS board Chair Michelle McKissack called for a comprehensive approach to crime and violence in Memphis. A day after district officials hit back at Mayor Jim Strickland for linking rising truancy and declining school enrollment to juvenile crime, McKissack suggested local elected officials should convene an emergency summit to explore solutions.

• 9/6/22 - 17-year-old student charged, accused of showing off loaded gun at high school - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - A 17-year-old was charged with carrying a gun on school property Tuesday.

• 9/6/22 - Glencliff High senior found with loaded gun in cafeteria during school - NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A high school student was taken into custody Tuesday after a gun was found in his possession inside the school.

• 9/2/22 - Possible threat involving Fulton High School posted to social media, police say - KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - A possible threat involving a local high school was posted to social media, prompting an investigation by law enforcement, according to the Knoxville Police Department spokesperson Scott Erland.

• 9/1/22 - School violence threats have consequences, East Tenn. sheriff warns - CROSSVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Cumberland County Sheriff Casey Cox said threatening violence toward a school was an uptick he’s seen in recent years. He said in the past month his office responded to two threats, both made by students. This is one of four threats made this week reported to different East Tennessee school systems.