A pair of Republican lawmakers have asked Attorney General Merrick Garland to prosecute the suspect in the Nashville school killing with hate crimes.
On Wednesday, three pupils and three staff members were murdered at Covenant Christian School in Nashville. Police also murdered the gunman.
Representatives Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) and Lance Gooden (R-Texas) think the gunman chose the Covenant Christian School, which is part of a church facility because it is a religious school.
“The plain text of federal law states unequivocally that an act of violence against any person based on a variety of factors, including their religion, is a hate crime,” Ogles said in a statement.
“This is indefensible, unjustifiable, and grotesque violence.” The extreme Left’s anti-conservative language and continuous assaults on Christianity have resulted in the violent killings of three children and three people.”
According to public comments made by Nashville police, investigators are still unsure of the shooter’s purpose.
“The shooter’s target was this school — this church building,” Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said. “However, we currently have no information indicating that the shooter was targeting any of the six people killed.”
Senators Josh Hawley (R-MO) and John Kennedy (R-LA) have also asked for the killing to be classified as a hate crime. This week, Hawley proposed legislation on the Senate floor urging his peers to denounce it as such.
The FBI and Nashville police are investigating a screed written by the gunman. The attacker was a previous pupil at the institution, according to reports.
“At this time, no motive has been identified,” Garland stated earlier this week.
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