Trial Opens For Father Of Georgia School Shooting Suspect

WINDER, Ga. — A man whose teenage boy is accused of sidesplitting 2 students and 2 teachers astatine a Georgia precocious schoolhouse should beryllium held responsible for providing nan limb contempt warnings astir alleged threats his boy made, a charismatic said Monday.

The proceedings of Colin Gray is 1 of respective cases astir nan state wherever prosecutors are trying to clasp parents responsible aft their children are accused successful fatal shootings.

Gray faces 29 counts, including 2 counts of second-degree murder, 2 counts of involuntary manslaughter and galore counts of second-degree cruelty to children related to nan September 2024 shooting astatine Apalachee High School successful Winder, Ga.

“This is not a lawsuit astir holding parents accountable for what their children do,” Barrow County Dist. Atty. Brad Smith said successful his opening statement. “This lawsuit is astir this suspect and his actions successful allowing a kid that he has custody complete entree to a firearm and ammunition aft being warned that that kid was going to harm others.”

Prosecutors reason that amounts to cruelty to children, and second-degree execution is defined successful Georgia rule arsenic causing nan decease of a kid by committing nan crime of cruelty to children.

Investigators person said Colt Gray, who was 14 astatine nan time, cautiously planned nan Sept. 4, 2024, shooting astatine nan schoolhouse northeast of Atlanta.

But Brian Hobbs, an lawyer for Colin Gray, said nan shooting’s readying and timing “were hidden by Colt Gray from his father. That’s nan quality betwixt calamity and criminal liability. You cannot clasp personification criminally responsible for failing to foretell what was intentionally hidden from them.”

With a semiautomatic firearm successful his book bag, nan tube sticking retired and wrapped successful poster board, Colt Gray boarded nan schoolhouse bus, investigators said. He near his second-period people and emerged from a bath pinch nan weapon and past changeable group successful a schoolroom and hallways, they said.

Smith told nan assemblage that Colin Gray’s girl was successful lockdown astatine her mediate schoolhouse and texted her begetter that location had been a shooting astatine nan precocious school. When rule enforcement arrived astatine Gray’s home, he met them successful nan car shed and “without immoderate prompting, he blurts out, ‘I knew it,’” Smith said.

Smith said that successful September 2021, Colt Gray utilized a schoolhouse machine to hunt nan phrase, “how to termination your dad.” School assets officers were past sent to nan home, but it was wished to beryllium a “misunderstanding,” Smith said.

Sixteen months earlier nan shooting, successful May 2023, rule enforcement acted connected a extremity from nan FBI aft a shooting threat was made online concerning an simple school. The threat was traced to a machine astatine Gray’s home, Smith said.

Colin Gray was told astir nan threat and was asked whether his boy had entree to guns. Gray replied that he and his boy “take this schoolhouse shooting worldly very seriously,” according to Smith. Colt Gray denied that he made nan threat and said that his online relationship had been hacked, Smith said.

That Christmas, Colin Gray gave his boy nan weapon arsenic a gift and continued to bargain accessories aft that, including “a batch of ammunition,” Smith said.

Colin Gray knew his boy was obsessed pinch schoolhouse shooters, moreover having a shrine successful his chamber to Nikolas Cruz, nan shooter successful nan 2018 massacre astatine Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School successful Parkland, Fla., prosecutors person said. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation supplier had testified that nan teen’s parents had discussed their son’s fascination pinch schoolhouse shooters but decided that it was successful a joking discourse and not a superior issue.

Three weeks earlier nan shooting, Gray received a chilling matter from his son: “Whenever thing happens, conscionable cognize nan humor is connected your hands,” according to Smith.

Colin Gray was besides alert his son’s intelligence wellness had deteriorated and had sought thief from a counseling work weeks earlier nan shooting, an interrogator testified.

“We person had a very difficult past mates of years and he needs help. Anger, anxiety, speedy to beryllium volatile. I don’t cognize what to do,” Colin Gray wrote astir his son.

But Smith said Colin Gray ne'er followed done connected concerns astir getting his boy admitted to an in-patient facility.

The proceedings is being held successful Winder, successful Barrow County, wherever nan shooting happened. The defense asked for a alteration of venue because of pretrial publicity, and prosecutors agreed. The judge kept nan proceedings successful Winder but decided to bring successful jurors from adjacent Hall County to perceive nan case. Jurors were selected past week.

Raby writes for nan Associated Press.