Murder and manslaughter conviction for parent of 2024 school shooter

[Euler]

CNN said:→

The father of the teenager who allegedly killed four people at his Georgia high school in 2024 is set to stand trial on murder and manslaughter charges in the latest case testing the limits of who is responsible for a school shooting.

Colin Gray, the father of Colt Gray, has pleaded not guilty to nearly 30 charges, including two counts each of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter.

The case stems from the September 2024 shooting at Apalachee High School, when then-14-year-old Colt Gray allegedly used an AR15-style rifle to kill two students and two teachers and injure nine¹ others. He ultimately surrendered to police and has admitted to the shooting, according to authorities.

More than a year earlier, law enforcement had questioned the teen and father about "online threats to commit a school shooting," though no charges were filed, authorities said. Even so, Colin Gray bought a firearm for his son as a Christmas present in December 2023 -- the same firearm he used in the mass shooting, according to two law enforcement sources with direct knowledge of the investigation.

The indictment alleges Gray allowed his teenage son access to a firearm and ammunition after receiving "sufficient warning" that his son would harm and endanger others, actions that constitute "criminal negligence" by "consciously disregarding a substantial and unjustifiable risk."
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Colin Gray has remained behind bars since his arrest a day after the shooting. If convicted, he faces 10 to 30 years in prison on each murder charge and 1 to 10 years on each manslaughter charge.

The trial is set to begin with jury selection [February 9] and is expected to last about three weeks.

Colt Gray, now 16, has been indicted on 55 felony counts, including four counts of malice murder, and will be tried as an adult, according to court documents. He has pleaded not guilty, although a defense attorney last year raised the possibility he may change his plea. A trial date has not been set.
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Colt Gray had been questioned by law enforcement in May 2023 regarding "several anonymous tips about online threats to commit a school shooting at an unidentified location and time," according to a joint statement from FBI Atlanta and the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. The online threats included photographs of guns, according to the statement.

The teen and his father were interviewed by the county sheriff's office, and Colt Gray denied making the threats online, the statement said. Jackson County alerted local schools to continue monitoring the issue, but law enforcement did not have probable cause to arrest or take other actions, according to the statement.
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¹actually seven others wounded, 11 total shot

AP News said:→

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Colin Gray faces 29 counts, including two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of involuntary manslaughter and numerous counts of second-degree cruelty to children related to the shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder. ....

An indictment says Gray committed cruelty to children by giving his son, Colt, access to a gun and ammunition "after receiving sufficient warning that Colt Gray would harm and endanger the bodily safety of another." Second-degree murder, an unusual charge under Georgia law, is defined as causing the death of a child by committing the crime of cruelty to children.
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Colin Gray knew his son was obsessed with school shooters, even having a shrine in his bedroom to Nikolas Cruz, the shooter in the 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, prosecutors have said. A GBI agent testified that the teen's parents had discussed their son's fascination with school shooters but decided that it was in a joking context and not a serious issue.

Colin Gray was also aware his son's mental health had deteriorated, investigators testified. Seeking help from a counseling service weeks before the shooting, he wrote about his son: "We have had a very difficult past couple of years and he needs help. Anger, anxiety, quick to be volatile. I don't know what to do."
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"Cruelty to children" seems more like a political statement than an accurate charge.

Edited March 4, 2026 at 03:45 AM by Euler
charges → conviction

[Black Flag]

On 2/9/2026 at 10:39 PM, Euler said:

"Cruelty to children" seems more like a political statement than an accurate charge.

Not when you are wearing your "concerned face" in front of crying cameras.

[Euler]

AP News said:→

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Colin Gray was found guilty of second-degree murder in the deaths of two 14-year-old students, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo. Georgia law defines second-degree murder as causing the death of a child by committing the crime of cruelty to children. Gray was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the killings of teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53.

Another teacher and eight other students were wounded. Gray was also convicted of multiple counts of reckless conduct and cruelty to children.
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... He will be sentenced at a later date. Second-degree murder is punishable by at least 10 but no more than 30 years in prison, while involuntary manslaughter carries a penalty of one to 10 years in prison.
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[Euler]