Video, photos of deadly Nashville federal courthouse shooting released

WatchVideo, photos of deadly Nashville federal courthouse shooting releasedby Ashley Griffin

5VIEW ALL PHOTOSSecurity-camera stills released by the U.S. attorney’s office shows what appears to be Henson at Nashville’s federal courthouse on Oct. 8, 2026. (Photo: U.S. attorney’s office for the Middle District of Tennessee)Comment on this story0CommentShare storySharetopics: NashvilleFederal courthouseShootingSecurity officerJack Gregory Henson IIU.S. MarshalsTennessee Bureau of InvestigationSecurity videoNASHVILLE, Tenn. (WZTV) — New details, photos and security video have emerged from the deadly shooting at Nashville’s federal courthouse, where a security officer shot an armed man at the building’s entrance last week.

A man carrying a gun and knife pointed both weapons at security officers inside Nashville’s federal courthouse on the morning of Oct. 8 before moving rapidly toward one officer with the knife extended, according to a new account from federal and local prosecutors.

A court security officer fired as Jack Gregory Henson II came close enough to strike him with the knife, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire said in a joint release from the U.S. attorney’s office for the Middle District of Tennessee and District Attorney General Glenn Funk’s office.

The release provides a more detailed account of the Oct. 8 confrontation at the Fred D. Thompson Federal Courthouse. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is still investigating the shooting and has not announced its findings.

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Henson entered the courthouse at about 9:30 a.m. and approached the security checkpoint, McGuire said. The release says a security recording shows him displaying a revolver and knife, pointing both at officers and approaching one officer with his arms extended and the knife out.

A security-camera still released by the U.S. attorney’s office shows what appears to be Henson at Nashville’s federal courthouse on Oct. 8, 2026. (Photo: U.S. attorney’s office for the Middle District of Tennessee)

The officer then fired, according to McGuire. Members of the U.S. Marshals Service began lifesaving efforts before emergency personnel arrived.

Henson was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. No officers were injured, according to the TBI.

McGuire said Henson’s firearm was a North American Arms .22-caliber revolver bought from a licensed dealer in North Carolina in February 2022. The gun was loaded and had a spent cartridge casing in its cylinder, the release said.

Officials do not believe Henson fired it inside the courthouse.

A photograph released by the U.S. attorney’s office shows a small revolver. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert E. McGuire identified Henson’s weapon as a North American Arms .22-caliber revolver. (Photo: U.S. attorney’s office for the Middle District of Tennessee)

Initial accounts from Metro Nashville police said Henson tried to fire a gun that malfunctioned before he pulled a knife. McGuire’s release does not say whether Henson attempted to fire or whether the gun malfunctioned, and describes him displaying both weapons at the checkpoint. The presence of a spent casing does not establish when or where it was fired.

The TBI said it is collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses at the request of Funk and the U.S. Marshals Service. Its findings will go to the district attorney for review. Investigators have not publicly identified a motive.