The Metro Nashville Police Department has confirmed that 40-year-old Chrysta Thomas, mother of the Antioch High School shooter Solomon Henderson, turned herself over to authorities in Las Vegas on a charge of unlawful possession of a firearm. WSMV reports that Thomas, who had an outstanding warrant for her arrest, chose not to be interviewed following her surrender on Tuesday evening.
Thomas was booked into jail under the charge that pertained to her status as a convicted felon. Despite having a 2010 felony conviction in Los Angeles for possession of a stolen vehicle, further details on how Thomas came to unlawfully possess the gun or what, if any, her involvement was in the Antioch High School shooting have not been provided. Her bond was set at $5,000, according to WKRN.
Thomas’ son, Solomon Henderson, carried out a deadly attack at Antioch High School on January 22, 2025, where he killed 16-year-old Josselin Corea Escalante before taking his own life. After the incident, detectives closely scrutinized online materials left by Henderson, including journal entries and website postings, which revealed his exposure to extremist materials and an admiration for mass murderers. Despite this harrowing insight, no criminal prosecution arose directly out of the investigation into the shooting, per Fox17's coverage.
The arrest of Chrysta Thomas came about after a laboratory analysis of the pistol used by Henderson in the shooting found traces of her DNA. Following the analysis, authorities then issued an arrest warrant and entered her name into the FBI’s National Crime Information Center’s database with nationwide extradition. After the tragic event at the school, the rest of Henderson's family moved away from their home on Carefree Lane in Antioch to an undisclosed location. This move and the subsequent nationwide manhunt culminated with Thomas’ voluntary surrender to law enforcement this past Tuesday.
