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Church Shooting in Tennessee Leaves One Dead and Six Wounded Church Shooting in Tennessee Leaves One Dead and Seven Wounded
(about 1 hour later)
One person was killed and six others were wounded after a gunman opened fire on Sunday at a church in Antioch, Tenn., near Nashville, officials said. The police said the gunman, who shot himself, was in custody. One person was killed and seven others were wounded after a gunman opened fire on Sunday at a church in Antioch, Tenn., near Nashville, officials said. The police said the gunman, who shot himself, was in custody.
The shooting happened at 11:15 a.m. Central time at the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ. The shooting happened at 11:15 a.m. local time at the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ. The Nashville Fire Department said all of the victims except one were over 60 years old. The person who was killed was a woman, the police said.
The Nashville Fire Department said all but one of the victims were over 60 years old. The person who was killed was a woman, the police said. A church usher, described by the police as an “extraordinarily brave individual,” was pistol-whipped when he confronted the gunman.
The gunman’s identity was not immediately available. At a news conference, a police spokesman, Don Aaron, said the gunman was in his mid-20s and was not known to have any connection to the church. The gunman shot himself in the “head area,” Mr. Aaron said. The usher then ran to his car, got his gun and returned to ensure “the gunman didn’t make any more movements until police arrived,” Don Aaron, a police spokesman, said at a news conference. The usher sustained a “significant injury” to his head, Mr. Aaron said.
The gunman’s motive was unclear. He pulled up to the church in a blue S.U.V. and was wearing a neoprene mask similar to what a skier would wear, Mr. Aaron said. He said the gunman was a 26-year-old black man who was not known to have any connection to the church. Officials did not release his name.
The church holds a worship service at 10 a.m., according to its website. The gunman’s motive was unclear. He pulled up to the church in a blue S.U.V. that he left running. The gunman was wearing a neoprene mask similar to what a skier would wear, Mr. Aaron said.
A woman who lives next door told the television station WKRN that people had come to her home seeking help. About 50 people were in the church at the time of the shooting, Mr. Aaron said. The church holds a worship service at 10 a.m., according to its website. In a welcome message on its website, the church describes itself as “a friendly, Bible based group of folks who love the Lord and are interested in spreading His Word to those who are lost.”
She said her husband went to the church and saw someone in the parking lot and someone else in the doorway of the church. A man who lives near the church said people had come to his home looking for help, so he headed over. He told the television station WKRN that by the time he arrived, the gunman had shot a woman in the back in the parking lot and “then he turned around, and rolled her over and shot her in the face.”
“Then he went through the church, and he knocked one older man off a walker on the floor,” he added.
Mayor Megan Barry of Nashville said in a statement that the shooting was a “terrible tragedy.”
“My heart aches for the family and friends of the deceased as well as for the wounded victims and their loved ones,” she said. “Their lives have been forever changed, as has the life of their faith community at Burnette Chapel Church of Christ.”