Deadly Tennessee church shooting opens a civil rights investigation

One dead, seven wounded after a Tennessee church shooting. Twenty-five-year-old Emanuel Kidega Samson immigrated from Sudan two decades ago that police say is the reported suspect of Sunday’s shooting of Burnette Chapel Church of Christ. An usher, Robert Engle, 22, confronted the shooter initiating a one-on-one struggle for the control of the gun, causing him to cause a self-inflicted gunshot wound. No motive has been determined. Church members stated that Emanuel Kidega Samson had been attending the church for about one year to two years before Sunday’s incident, however saying he hadn’t attended services “in quite a while.” Melanie Smith, 39, the woman who was shot and killed, was walking to her car when she was hit: police stated. The gunman continued by entering the back of the church and opening fire, hitting six people, who were rushed to the hospital. Police identified those being treated at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and in stable condition as: William Jenkins, 83; Marlene Jenkins, 84; Peggy Spann, 65; and Linda Busch, 68. David Spann, 60, was also being treated at Vanderbilt, but was listed as in critical but stable condition. Katherine Dickerson, 64, was in stable condition at Skyline Medical Center. Engle was also being treated at Skyline. Megan Barry, mayor of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County, announced later that afternoon on Twitter, the shooting “is a tragedy for our city. My heart aches for the family and friends of the deceased as well as for the wounded victims and their loved ones.” Gov. Bill Haslam followed up to Megan Barry’s statement by stating, they were praying for the victims and “committed to supporting the Antioch community in the aftermath of this tragedy.”