Threatening Email To Tennessee Star Editor Linked To School Shooting

Misdemeanor harassment charges filed in Williamson County.

Image Credit: RawPixel / Public Domain

The Center Square [By Jon Styf] –

A man was charged with misdemeanor harassment in Williamson County after writing a threatening email to Tennessee Star Editor-in-Chief Michael Patrick Leahy.

The July 9 email regarding Leahy and the Tennessee Star’s attempts to get police to release the Nashville Covenant School shooter’s manifesto included the closing, “I’ll come to your studio and end you. Nobody will Miss you Mikey.”

Michael Alonzo Rouse was charged with misdemeanor harassment related to the email, obtained by The Center Square, which was signed “Mike” and included the sender’s phone number.

The threatening email included the subject line “Keep it up and You will die you Irish mick…”

“No one should be threatened with death for doing their job and Leahy is doing his job with the public interest in mind,” a statement from the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Faith and Freedom Coalition said. “No one should be threatened with death for a differing point of view or just because they are a conservative like Leahy.”

The group said it is important to know the shooter’s motivations and the writings should be released as the policy debate continues over red flag laws heading into a planned Aug. 21 Tennessee Legislature special session on public safety, expected to be called by Gov. Bill Lee.

“In this specific case, we are praying that the individual who sent the email receives the harshest punishment available under the law and that Michael Patrick Leahy and family are safe,” the group said.

According to the Star’s website, “The Tennessee Star – launched in 2017 – is the flagship member of the Star News Digital Media family.” Star News Digital Media owns and operates “a family of state focused conservative news sites, including The Tennessee Star, The Ohio Star, The Michigan Star, The Minnesota Sun, The Virginia Star, The Georgia Star News, The Florida Capital Star, The Arizona Sun Times, The Wisconsin Daily Star, The Pennsylvania Daily Star, and The Connecticut Star, The Iowa Star, The New Hampshire Star, The South Carolina Sun, and The Star News Network.”

About the Author: Jon Styf, The Center Square Staff Reporter – Jon Styf is an award-winning editor and reporter who has worked in Illinois, Texas, Wisconsin, Florida and Michigan in local newsrooms over the past 20 years, working for Shaw Media, Hearst and several other companies. Follow Jon on Twitter @JonStyf.