Georgia high school shooting suspect's father faces judge after murder charges
The father of Colt Gray, the teen suspect in the Apalachee High School shooting, appeared in a Georgia courtroom Friday to face multiple charges stemming from this week's deadly attack.
Colin Gray, 54, is being charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Thursday when the agency announced his arrest. The 14-year-old shooting suspect has been charged with four counts of felony murder.
GBI Director Chris Hosey said at a news conference Thursday night that the charges against Colin Gray stem from "knowingly allowing his son to possess a weapon."
Georgia law prohibits minors from possessing handguns, but there is no minimum age to possess a rifle or shotgun in Georgia.
During a brief court hearing Friday morning, Judge Currie Mingledorff II told Colin Gray he faced up to 180 years in prison if he was convicted on all counts. The judge also advised him of his rights, and the father said, "Yes, sir," in response to some questions from the judge.
District Attorney Brad Smith, whose district includes the Barrow County high school where the shooting happened, didn't rule out whether the father would face additional charges as the investigation continued. Smith said more charges would be filed at some point against Gray's son for the victims who survived the attack.
The teen, a student at Apalachee High School, allegedly killed four people, two students and two teachers, when he opened fire at the school in Winder, Georgia, on Wednesday morning. Nine others were wounded and hospitalized, but they were all expected to survive and "make a full recovery," Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said Thursday. Hospital officials said Thursday that at least seven of those nine patients had been treated and released, and at least one other remained hospitalized in stable condition.
Police and federal agents were investigating if the gun used in the shooting, described by officials as an AR-style weapon, was purchased by the teen's father as a gift for his son in December 2023, according to four federal law enforcement sources close to the investigation.
In May of 2023, the suspect and his father were both interviewed by the Jackson County Sheriff's office after the FBI received tips about online posts threatening a school shooting, the FBI said in a statement Wednesday night. At the time, investigators didn't have enough evidence for an arrest or enough probable cause "to take any additional law enforcement action," the FBI said.
According to reports from the Jackson County Sheriff's office released Thursday, the then-13-year-old claimed he deleted the Discord account the threats were made from because it kept getting hacked.
In the incident report, a deputy reported that the teen "assured me he never made any threats to shoot up any school."
Local police records obtained by CBS News indicate the alleged shooter's parents were going through a divorce at the time. His mother took custody of two other children in the divorce while the suspect stayed with his father, the records show.
The alleged shooter is being "handled" as an adult, officials said Wednesday. He also had his first court appearance Friday morning.
