Southeast
Tennessee judge denies release of Covenant School shooter's writings to the public
A Tennessee judge on July 4 denied the release of the Covenant School shooter’s writings, stating that doing so might present a security risk to the Nashville private school.
The ruling came in response to Brewer, et al. vs. Metropolitan Government of Nashville, et al., in which several parties, including the National Police Association and Tennessee Firearms Association, sued the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) for access to records related to the March 27, 2023, school shooting that left six dead, including Mike Hill, 61; Cynthia Peak, 61; Katherine Koonce, 60; and 9-year-olds Hallie Scruggs, Evelyn Dieckhaus and William Kinney.
“School shootings and violence have unfortunately become commonplace in our society. Access to immediate information has also become a societal expectation which we all share,” Davidson County Chancery Court Judge I’Ashea Myles wrote in the 60-page order. “However, there are occasions when this immediate access to and demand for information must be balanced and moderated to safeguard the integrity of our legal system, particularly the criminal legal system.”
She added that during a pending criminal investigation, “Tennessee courts have determined that unfettered access to every record at any time does not serve to uphold the system of justice that we all depend upon to ensure that the criminal legal system and investigations remain fair and impartial for every involved person.”
JUDGE ORDERS FBI TO HAND OVER TRANS SCHOOL SHOOTER AUDREY HALE’S MANIFESTO
Memorials for the six victims who were killed in a mass shooting are placed outside the Covenant School in Nashville, Tennessee, on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. Three adults and three children were killed inside the school. (KR/Mega for Fox News Digital)
“In this case, the Tennessee General Assembly has set forth both state law exceptions and statutory which will prevent the disclosure of materials held by the Respondent not only to preserve the criminal legal system and the integrity of ongoing investigations but also to keep from public view information which is related to school security coming from any source,” Myles continued.
Deceased school shooter and former Covenant student Audrey Hale, who identified as a trans male named Aiden Hale, had dozens of pages of writing and artwork that were initially in the possession of her parents until they transferred ownership of Hale’s estate to the families of victims included as intervenors in the lawsuit.
NASHVILLE AUTHORITIES ‘AWARE’ OF PURPORTED LEAK OF CHRISTIAN SCHOOL SHOOTER’S MANIFESTO
Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale opens the church office doors once inside the school building. (Twitter @MNPDNashville)
MNPD officers fatally shot Hale inside the school the morning of the shooting.
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No records held by the MNPD “shall be disclosed at this time,” Myles ruled after months of litigation between police, victims’ families and journalists requesting access to the shooter’s writings and other materials.
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The judge wrote that the court “would be hard pressed to find that the original and complied writings … and artwork of an individual whose intent and plan was to cause and inflict harm on the innocent in a school setting would not be related to school security and thus exempt from disclosure.”
NASHVILLE SCHOOL SHOOTER AUDREY HALE: WHO IS 28-YEAR-OLD TRANSGENDER FORMER STUDENT WHO OPENED FIRE AT SCHOOL
MNPD argued that while the assailant is deceased, an investigation into the shooting remains ongoing and could result in future criminal action. The police department also said “certain portions of the requested records may be released without compromising the open criminal investigation,” the judge noted.
Covenant School shooter Audrey Hale, 28, pictured in a driver’s license photo and on school surveillance video released by Nashville, Tennessee, police. Hale killed three 9-year-olds and three adults at a private school linked to a church. (Metro Nashville Police Department)
Meanwhile, victims’ families and the Covenant School, who were listed as intervenors in the lawsuit, argued “that all of the material and information held by Respondent in this matter relate to school security and should be exempt from disclosure completely, as the release of any information will inspire copycat attacks and thus all of the information is related in some form to school security,” Myles wrote.
In March of last year, authorities became aware of a purported leak of crime scene photographs of the killer’s handwritten notes.
AUDREY HALE POLICE BODYCAMS RELEASED
In March, a federal judge ordered the FBI to grant public records requests for Hale’s so-called “manifesto” that police found in her vehicle after the shooting. The FBI had refused such requests, arguing that doing so “could reasonably be expected to interfere with enforcement proceedings.”
Attorneys representing the parent company of the Tennessee Star, a local newspaper, which sued the FBI for access to Hale’s manifesto, said “the public has an urgent right to know why this tragedy happened, how future events may be prevented, and what policies should be in place to address this and other similar tragedies,” lawyers for the newspaper wrote in a federal complaint.
A police officer walks by an entrance to the Covenant School after a shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday, March 27, 2023. (AP Photo/John Amis)
“[The] FBI has no right to retain a monopoly on this information,” they wrote.
Critics of the Tennessee and federal government decisions not to release documents believe Hale’s manifesto may reveal the shooter’s motive to target the school and kill adults and children alike.
Fox News’ Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.
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Southeast
Ex-mayor caught in lewd act at booze-filled pool party, prosecutors say
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A former Louisiana mayor is on trial after prosecutors allege her teenage son caught her having sex with one of his 16-year-old friends at a booze-filled pool party.
Misty Roberts, 43, the former mayor of DeRidder, is facing charges of carnal knowledge of a juvenile and indecent behavior with a juvenile, according to KPLC. She has pleaded not guilty.
Roberts’ second trial is underway after the first case resulted in a mistrial due to judicial issues in nearby Beauregard Parish, the outlet reported.
The charges stem from a 2024 late-night gathering at Roberts’ home.
Misty Roberts, 43, the former mayor of DeRidder, is facing charges of carnal knowledge of a juvenile and indecent behavior with a juvenile, according to KPLC. (Louisiana Highway Patrol)
Last week, Roberts’ children and her ex-husband took the stand in her trial, along with a DoorDash driver, family friend and multiple teenagers who were present at the party, according to KPLC.
Jurors were shown a video interview of Roberts’ son, taken last year, in which the teenager reportedly told authorities he witnessed his mother having sex with his friend through a crack in a window during the party.
However, upon taking the stand last week, the teenager reportedly told jurors he was not certain of what he actually saw that evening.
Roberts’ defense attorneys have disputed the recording, telling jurors that part of the interview could have been improperly transcribed.
ICE ARRESTS ALLEGED CHILD SEX OFFENDER RELEASED UNDER CONNECTICUT SANCTUARY LAWS
Prosecutors allege Misty Roberts had sex with her son’s 16-year-old friend at a booze-filled house party in 2024. (Misty Roberts/Facebook)
Text messages between the mother and son were also shown to the jury, with the pair discussing what type of alcohol the teenagers wanted for the party.
In another exchange, Roberts’ son warned her of the victim’s age, texting her, “He is seventeen,” according to the outlet. The victim was 16 years old at the time of the alleged incident.
Additional text messages from the night of the party show Roberts’ son calling the situation “crazy” and telling her that his younger sister was emotional.
Upon taking the stand, Roberts’ daughter told the court that she witnessed her mother and the victim “on top of each other” the night of the party,” KPLC reported.
KENTUCKY CHILD KILLER WALKS FREE ON ‘GOOD BEHAVIOR’, GETS ARRESTED AGAIN WITHIN DAYS
Following the alleged encounter, prosecutors reportedly said the victim’s mother texted Roberts to confirm she was not pregnant.
Roberts replied that she was on birth control, and later screenshotted the messages and sent them in a separate group chat while suggesting she would take an emergency contraceptive known as “Plan B.”
Jurors also heard from a DoorDash driver who testified that he fulfilled an order from “Misty C” to purchase the emergency contraceptive and leave it at the front door of the home, the outlet reported.
The driver added that he later heard rumors about the alleged incident and believed his delivery was connected.
REGISTERED SEX OFFENDER’S CITY COUNCIL BID SPARKS FURY AS OFFICIALS EXPLORE BLOCKING HIS PATH
Roberts’ nephew also testified that he attempted to see what was happening in the room during the party by using his phone’s camera, but was unsure if he recorded any footage and did not send anything to anyone following the alleged encounter, according to the outlet.
The nephew also admitted to deleting his Snapchat memories before investigators took custody of his phone because he did not want to get in trouble over photos of underage drinking, adding he did not intend to delete evidence.
Another member of the victim’s friend group also told jurors that he witnessed Roberts flirting with the victim on the night of the party, while revealing the boy appeared to be drunk and vomited later that night, KPLC reported.
On Saturday, Roberts’ ex-husband, Duncan Clanton, reportedly testified that Roberts confessed to having sex with the teenage boy and that the couple’s children had caught them in the act.
CHILD PREDATOR DUBBED ‘MONSTER PARENTS FEAR MOST’ CLEARED FOR RELEASE THROUGH CALIFORNIA PAROLE PROGRAM
Misty Roberts is currently on trial in Beauregard Parish for allegedly having sex with her son’s 16-year-old friend at a house party in 2024. (Google Maps)
Jurors were also shown text messages between the married couple, in which Clanton told Roberts, “I would deny what happened if you’re approached by anyone at the meeting,” on the day of a city council meeting.
In another exchange, Clanton reportedly testified Roberts texted him, “I need you to deny it, please.”
Clanton added that while he refused to deny the allegations, he avoided talking about the incident.
“I can’t keep hurting others, friends and family. Lord knows I’ve done enough,” Roberts reportedly texted Clanton, according to KPLC.
On cross-examination, when Roberts’ defense attorney asked Clanton if he felt as though Roberts was a good mom, the father reportedly answered, “No.”
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Roberts resigned from her position as mayor just days before her arrest in 2024. She was initially prohibited from making contact with her children without permission from Clanton and the court revoked child support.
Roberts’ defense attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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Southeast
Florida man who wrestled cop’s gun away and killed him, executed after final appeals rejected
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A Florida man who prosecutors say wrestled a police officer’s service weapon away during a 1991 traffic stop and fatally shot him was executed Tuesday evening after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected his final appeals.
Billy Leon Kearse, 53, is set to receive a three-drug lethal injection beginning at 6 p.m. at Florida State Prison near Starke.
Kearse was sentenced to death in 1991 after being convicted of first-degree murder and robbery with a firearm. The Florida Supreme Court later ruled that jurors were not properly instructed on aggravating circumstances and ordered a new sentencing hearing. He was resentenced to death in 1997.
Kearse’s execution would mark the state’s third in 2026, following a record 19 executions in 2025.
Clouds hover over the entrance of the Florida State Prison in Starke, Fla., Aug. 3, 2023. (AP)
Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed more death warrants last year than any Florida governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Before that, the highest number in a single year was eight in 1984 and 2014 under governors Bob Graham and Rick Scott, respectively.
Court records show Fort Pierce Police Officer Danny Parrish stopped Kearse in January 1991 for driving the wrong way on a one-way street. After Kearse failed to produce a valid driver’s license and resisted being handcuffed, a struggle broke out.
During the confrontation, Kearse grabbed Parrish’s firearm and fired 14 shots, striking the officer nine times and hitting his body armor four times, prosecutors said. A nearby taxi driver heard the gunfire and used Parrish’s radio to call for help.
FLORIDA EXECUTES MAN CONVICTED OF KILLING AIRMAN AND GIRLFRIEND IN 1987 HOME INVASION
This photo shows a gurney used in giving lethal injections to convicted death row inmates. (Sue Ogrocki, File)
Parrish was taken to a hospital, where he died from his wounds.
Investigators used license plate information Parrish had radioed in before the struggle to identify Kearse’s vehicle and home address. He was arrested shortly afterward.
Last week, the Florida Supreme Court denied Kearse’s appeals, in which his attorneys argued he was deprived of a fair penalty phase and that his intellectual disability made him ineligible for execution. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected his final appeal Tuesday without comment.
FLORIDA EXECUTES RICHARD BARRY RANDOLPH CONVICTED OF RAPING, KILLING FORMER CONVENIENCE STORE MANAGER
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. (Octavio Jones/Getty Images)
A total of 47 people were executed in the U.S. last year. Florida carried out the most, outpacing Texas, South Carolina and Alabama, which each conducted five executions.
Two more executions are scheduled in Florida this month. Michael Lee King, 54, is set to be executed March 17. James Aren Duckett, 68, is scheduled for March 31.
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Duckett, a former police officer, was convicted in 1987 of raping and murdering 11-year-old Teresa McAbee. At the time, he was working for the Mascotte Police Department when McAbee was last seen getting into his patrol car outside a convenience store. Her body was later found less than a mile away in a lake. Authorities said she had been sexually battered, strangled and drowned.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Southeast
Violent repeat offender accused in Charlotte knife attack was free despite decade-long rap sheet
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A North Carolina man accused of stabbing another individual in broad daylight has faced more than 18 criminal charges over the past decade, including assault-related cases and a domestic-violence conviction, before the latest violent incident, court records show.
Micah Emmanuel Ragin, 31, was charged with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury after a Feb. 28 altercation in east Charlotte.
According to police, officers responded to a 911 call reporting an assault involving a knife. When they arrived, they found a man with a stab wound to a knee. Investigators say the suspect discarded a bag and the knife into a nearby creek and then boarded a city bus as it left the area.
Authorities later located the bus and identified Ragin as the suspect after reviewing transit security footage. Officers recovered a kitchen knife from the creek in the area shown on video. During an interview, police said Ragin admitted to being involved in a physical altercation but did not acknowledge the stabbing.
Micah Emmanuel Ragin, 31, was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury in Charlotte, N.C. (Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office)
A review of North Carolina court records shows Ragin’s interactions with law enforcement date back to at least 2015 and span multiple counties.
In 2016, he pleaded guilty to violating a domestic violence protective order, receiving a 24-day jail sentence and a court-ordered no-contact condition.
COLLEGE SOCCER STAR, GIRLFRIEND DEAD AS ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT’S RECORD IGNITES LAWMAKER FURY STATEWIDE
In prior years, he was charged in separate cases with assault on a female, assault on a campus police officer, communicating threats and resisting a public officer. Several of those cases were ultimately dismissed, including multiple charges in 2019 that court records state were “unable to prosecute due to COVID-19 court closures.”
Records also show misdemeanor drug and trespass convictions.
Altogether, court records indicate Ragin has faced more than 18 charges in several counties over multiple years before the current felony accusation.
CHARLOTTE TRAIN STABBING 911 CALLS CAPTURE PLEAS FOR HELP AFTER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ALLEGEDLY ATTACKED PASSENGER
The alleged stabbing comes months after the fatal killing of a young woman aboard a Charlotte light rail train, a case that drew national attention and intensified debate over repeat offenders and pandemic-era criminal justice policies.
Iryna Zarutska cowers as her attacker towers over her. (NewsNation via Charlotte Area Transit System)
That earlier case involved a defendant who was under state supervision at the time of the attack and prompted scrutiny of a 2021 COVID-era prison settlement negotiated during former Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration. The agreement authorized the early release or transition of approximately 3,500 incarcerated individuals. Republican officials claimed the agreement released dangerous offenders, while state officials have said the settlement primarily targeted medically vulnerable and nonviolent inmates.
State corrections officials have also said the light rail defendant was not released early as a result of that settlement and had completed his mandatory minimum sentence, though his name appeared on a settlement-related list due to retroactive eligibility criteria.
Republican officials have argued the cases reflect broader concerns about repeat offenders cycling through the system, while Democrats have defended pandemic-era decisions as necessary public health measures.
REPEAT OFFENDER ALLEGEDLY ASSAULTS HOSPITAL POLICE OFFICER JUST DAYS AFTER ARREST AT SAME FACILITY: REPORT
Republican Michael Whatley, left, and Democrat Roy Cooper (Getty Images)
“Micah Ragin was arrested and let back onto the streets 18 times too many — including under then-Governor Roy Cooper’s COVID mass inmate release,” Rep. Mark Harris, R-N.C., said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“Have Charlotte’s pro-crime Democrats learned nothing from Iryna’s tragic murder? How many victims will it take to finally keep criminals behind bars? The Queen City has been stained by crimes that are preventable — they are lucky this wasn’t the next Iryna Zarutska.”
Nick Puglia, regional press secretary for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, echoed similar criticism.
“Yet again, Roy Cooper’s soft-on-crime policies allowed a violent career criminal to roam free, resulting in a vicious attack. Cooper coddles criminals and North Carolinians pay the price,” Puglia said.
Republican U.S. Senate candidate Michael Whatley criticized what he described as “soft-on-crime” policies.
“Criminals belong behind bars. As a senator, I will always back the blue and fight to keep our communities safe,” Whatley said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
Cooper, who previously served two terms as North Carolina’s governor and is now running for the U.S. Senate, has defended his record on public safety and pushed back on Republican criticism.
“Violence of any kind is unacceptable, and we must keep North Carolinians safe,” a spokesperson for Cooper’s campaign said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “These Republican attacks are false – Roy Cooper is the only candidate who spent his career prosecuting violent criminals and keeping thousands of them behind bars as attorney general, and signing tough-on-crime laws and stricter pretrial release bail policy as governor.”
Cooper’s campaign has previously defended pandemic-era decisions as necessary public health measures and has denied that COVID-related policies led to the early release of dangerous offenders.
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Ragin’s felony case is pending, and officials have not announced a trial date.
Stepheny Price covers crime, including missing persons, homicides and migrant crime. Send story tips to stepheny.price@fox.com.
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