A suspect involved in a Georgia high school shooting is set to make their first court appearance, while the suspect's father is facing charges of second-degree murder. The tragic incident has sparked outrage and calls for stricter gun control laws, as the community grapples with the aftermath. Authorities are continuing their investigation to uncover more details about the shooting and the events leading up to it. Both the suspect and the father are expected to face legal proceedings in the coming days.
A deadly school year's start in a small north Georgia city left a community "heartbroken" on Friday after a 14-year-old mass shooting suspect and his father were charged in connection with the rampage that left two students and two teachers dead this week, authorities said.
Collin "Colt" Gray, 16, was a junior at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, that sheriff said. He is charged with four counts of felony murder in connection with the shooting on campus Wednesday morning that investigators say killed four people.
A young person brought a gun in a school and committed an evil act and he took lives, and he injured many other people-not only physically but mentally," said Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith at a news conference Thursday night.
Meanwhile, authorities have taken steps to hold the teenager's father, Colin Gray, 54, accountable after charging him Thursday with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, said the GBI.
Colin Gray, father of Colt Gray
Barrow County Sheriff's Office
An attorney for Colt Gray and Colin Gray could not be reached by CNN. The Barrow County Public Defender's Office would not confirm whether they are representing Colt Gray when reached by phone Thursday, and also had no comment. CNN has tried several times to contact Colin Gray by phone and in person at the family home.
"These charges are the result of Mr. Gray knowingly allowing his son Colt to be in possession of a weapon," GBI Director Chris Hosey said in today's news conference.
Wednesday's mass shooting marked the 45th school shooting of 2024 and the deadliest US school shooting since the March 2023 massacre at The Covenant School in Nashville in which six people died.
Here's what we know so far:
The suspect, a teenager, is likely to be tried as an adult. Colt Gray is currently being held at the Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice, and he will stay there while in custody until he turns 17, despite the case being moved to the adult system, Glenn Allen, the agency's spokesperson told CNN Thursday. Georgia law automatically diverts any juvenile age 13 to 17 who commits a serious crime into adult court. Gray is expected to make his first appearance in court Friday and is cooperating with investigators, according to authorities.
• Those four killed have been identified: Wednesday's deadly shooting at Apalachee High School claimed the lives of two 14-year-old students, Christian Angulo and Mason Schermerhorn, as well as two teachers, 53-year-old math teacher Cristina Irimie and 39-year-old assistant football coach Richard Aspinwall, who also taught math. Authorities say Irimie was celebrating her birthday with her students the day she was shot and killed, according to a family friend.
• The nine injured should fully recover: Of the nine other people injured, seven of them – six students and a teacher – were shot, the GBI said Thursday. The other two – both students – had other injuries, the GBI said. The nine are expected to fully recover from their injuries, Smith said Thursday.
• Shooting suspect questioned about online threats last year: Colt Gray and his father were interviewed by law enforcement "regarding online threats to commit a school shooting" in May 2023 that included photos of guns, a joint statement from FBI Atlanta and the Jackson County Sheriff's Office said. During the interview - which Colt Gray was 13 at the time - told investigators that "someone is accusing him of threatening to shoot up a school, stating he would never say such a thing, even in a joking manner," authorities said. The threats could not be corroborated and the sheriff's office closed the investigation, according to authorities.
Other schools got threats, investigators say: Apalachee High School received a phone threat Wednesday morning, before shots rang out on the school's campus, warning of shootings that would happen at five schools including Apalachee High, multiple law enforcement officials told CNN. It isn't known who made that call, and there is no evidence, as far as investigators can determine, that any other schools were targeted, although they will be following up on "any leads of any potential associates of the shooter that was involved in this incident," Hosey said.
• Suspect's dad bought gun used in shooting as gift, investigators say: Ahead of the charges against Colin Gray being announced Thursday, two law enforcement sources who have direct knowledge of the investigation said he told authorities he bought the AR-style rifle used in the Apalachee High School shooting as a holiday gift for his son back in December 2023. That would put the purchase of the gun months after authorities first contacted Colin Gray and his family as they investigated a school shooting threat last year.
