• A day after four people were killed in a shooting spree at a Georgia school allegedly committed by a 14-year-old student, the father of the suspected shooter has now also been charged.
• Colin Gray, 54, has been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of first-degree murder and eight counts of child abuse following the September 4 shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia.
• Colin’s charges are based on the fact that “Mr. Gray knowingly permitted his son, Colt, to possess a firearm,” authorities said at a Sept. 5 press conference.
  

A day after four people were killed in a shooting spree at a Georgia school, allegedly carried out by a 14-year-old student, the father of the suspected shooter has now also been charged.

Colin Gray, 54, has been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of first-degree murder and eight counts of child abuse. The charges stem from the Sept. 4 shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, that left two students and two teachers dead, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said on X (formerly Twitter).

His son, 14-year-old Colt Gray, was charged with four counts of murder. Authorities had previously stated at a press conference that the teenager would be tried as an adult.

The charge against Colin is based on the fact that “Mr. Gray knowingly permitted his son Colt to possess a firearm,” authorities said at a press conference on September 5.

Father and son made their first court appearance on Friday, September 6. According to CNN, Colt is expected to face additional charges after investigators speak with the injured victims, said Barrow County District Attorney Brad Smith.

A judge ruled that Colin could not be given the death penalty because he is under 18, CNN reported. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for December 4. As for Colin, the judge said he faces up to 180 years in prison if found guilty on all counts, according to the news agency.

“Second-degree murder is different in Georgia than it is in other states. It’s a fairly new charge and it specifically targets second-degree cruelty to children,” Smith said of Colin’s charge on Friday, according to CNN. “If you commit second-degree cruelty to children that results in death, that’s second-degree murder.”

In May 2023, Colt was questioned by police about his alleged threats to commit a school shooting, the FBI’s Atlanta division said in a statement.

“The father stated he had hunting weapons in the house, but the offender did not have unsupervised access to them. The offender denied making the threats online,” the FBI said.

According to the New York TimesColin owned several guns, including an AR-15. In a May 2023 conversation with investigators, Colin allegedly said he taught his son about guns and hunting after explaining his efforts to get outside with his son and play fewer video games, the outlet reported, citing a transcript.

“He knows the weight of the weapons and what they can do and how to use them and not use them,” he is said to have told investigators beforehand, according to a transcript provided to the Just.

According to the transcript, which is also available to Fox 5 Atlanta, Colin is said to have responded to the alleged threat by saying, “I’ll be furious if he does that,” and promising to completely deny him access to the “guns.”

According to the FBI, there was no sufficient suspicion to warrant an arrest or further police action, but local schools were notified to ensure the “individual remains under surveillance.”

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The two 14-year-old students Christian Angulo and Mason Schermerhorn as well as the teachers Richard Aspenwall (39) and Christina Irimie (53) were killed in the school shooting.

The nine other people injured in the shooting are expected to make a “full recovery,” authorities said.

At a press conference earlier this week, Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith called the shooting “pure evil.” The motive remains under investigation.