Uvalde Foundation asks for boycott of 'Louder with Crowder' amid Covenant leaks

Public officials and organizations from across Tennessee and the U.S. have issued statements in the hours since Monday's release of what conservative media personality Steven Crowder said were documents from the Covenant School shooter.

The Uvalde Foundation for Kids, a nonprofit organization working to end gun violence, called for a boycott of Crowder and his show, "Louder with Crowder," on Tuesday, a day after he released the three documents.

"The Uvalde Foundation For Kids ... encourages Crowder to sit and look into the eyes of these haunted families of Covenant and the countless others who have lost loved ones due to gun violence; and claim this was a good idea. Frankly — Crowder should be ashamed," the organization's statement reads. Nineteen students and two teachers were fatally shot at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas on May 24, 2022.

The foundation called Crowder's release of the documents "immature" and "out of context and destructive."

The Tennessean has not independently confirmed the authenticity of the documents released by Crowder, and Crowder did not return a message seeking comment for this story Tuesday.

The Metro Nashville Police Department said in a statement late Monday afternoon that images of the documents shown by Crowder were "not MNPD crime scene images."

"The police department has been in contact with a representative of Covenant families," the statement said. "Police department counselors are available to assist them in coping with the emotional trauma caused by the dissemination."

The document leaks have renewed a push by some lawmakers seeking the release of the investigative materials, journals and toxicology reports associated with the Covenant School case.

In May, 66 lawmakers signed a letter asking Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake to release the Covenant School shooter's writings.

In a statement released late Monday, Drake said he was greatly disturbed by the documents released by Crowder and said his department was "extremely serious about the investigation to identify the person responsible."

Drake also said the police department currently does not have control of the shooter’s journals due to litigation filed earlier this year.

"We are not at liberty to release the journals until the courts rule," he said. "Our police department looks forward to the ultimate resolution of the litigation concerning the journals.”

GOP Caucus Chairman Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby, was among the lawmakers who signed the May letter calling for police to release the shooter's writings. He is now asking for material be released immediately and for justice against those who leaked the documents.

"It’s disappointing that someone close to the investigation used their position to undermine the great work of MNPD. I sincerely hope that is not the case, but if it is, whoever is responsible should be held accountable," Faison said in a statement Tuesday. "We will never have all the answers we want, but It is still my belief the shooter’s writings and complete medical history will provide vital insight into her behavior leading up to this heinous, evil act.

"This information should be released immediately in an appropriately redacted way that protects public safety and respects victims."

After the documents were released by Crowder, Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell asked Metro Law Director Wally Dietz to launch an investigation. Dietz said Monday that he couldn't confirm or deny the authenticity of the documents because of pending litigation.

Some Covenant School family members slammed the release of the documents late Monday.

"We knew these writings, these thoughts from the shooter were heinous … the damage done today is already significant, and I'm worried it's only going to grow," said Brent Leatherwood, a Covenant parent. He said several of the parents had called him, upset and afraid to look at social media.

"Now, a community, a school, families who have already suffered so much, are left, yet again, to deal with this terror," he said. Leatherwood said he and the parents of Covenant School victims had not seen the shooter's writings and deferred any questions about the validity of the documents to police.

Several groups, including The Tennessean, sued Metro Nashville after those records requests were denied. The school and Covenant families are intervening in the lawsuit and seeking to prevent the city from releasing the records. The case remains pending in court.

The Tennessean has no plans to publish the writings verbatim and has sought to center coverage on public policy, the victims and the community. The news organization, for instance, profiled each of the victims and their contributions and visited dozens of houses of worship following the March shooting to learn how the community was dealing with the tragedy.

The Tennessean is not describing the contents of the images posted by Crowder.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Covenant document leaks spur call for boycott from Uvalde Foundation