Jackson police chief shares praise for Nashville first responders

March 29, 2023

WBBJ 7 Eyewitness News Staff,

JACKSON, Tenn. — Mass shootings can have an effect that stretches beyond city limits, bringing grief and questions.

This image provided by Metropolitan Nashville Police Department shows bodycam footage of police responding to an active shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville, Tenn., on Monday, March 27, 2023. The former student who shot through the doors of the Christian elementary school and killed three children and three adults had drawn a detailed map of the school. (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department via AP)

Only a few days have passed since Nashville’s mass shooting at The Covenant School. Jackson Police Chief Thom Corley shared his thoughts.

“First, you know, we never want any kind of event like that to ever happen. So our thoughts or prayers are, obviously, with the families of the victims, the church and the school, and also our brother and sister first responders because it’s a very difficult situation to deal with,” Corley said.

The body cam footage of the officers was released to the public as well.

“That type of training is what we do. What everyone saw on the released body cam footage is exactly the type of training that is required,” Corley said. “If the gunfire is going on, that means innocent people are being fired upon, and we have to neutralize that threat and that’s the primary goal.”

Corley also shared that the department is constantly conducting various training.

“In fact, we’re about to start our annual in service training that officers have to go through every year, mandated by the state and part of that is active shooter training that we’ll be doing here in the next month,” Corley said.

Jackson police also conduct safety trainings in the workplace and other various organizations. If you are interested, contact the Jackson Police Department at (731) 425-8400.

You can find more news from across the state here.