Colin Gray, the daddy of alleged faculty shooter Colt Gray, was discovered responsible of homicide on Tuesday in relation to the Sept. 4, 2024, capturing that killed 4 individuals and injured 9 others at Apalachee High School close to Winder, Georgia.
The jury deliberated for just a few hours. Their verdict comes after two weeks of testimony during which prosecutors argued that Colin Gray, the 55-year-old father of Colt Gray — who was 14 when he shot and killed a number of college students and lecturers at his faculty — must be held answerable for the capturing as a result of he purchased his son an AR-style rifle regardless of understanding he had violent tendencies and that his psychological well being was deteriorating. Colin Gray was discovered responsible of all costs, which included second-degree homicide, involuntary manslaughter and cruelty to youngsters.
Colin Gray now faces as much as 180 years in jail on costs of homicide within the second diploma and involuntary manslaughter.
During closing arguments Monday, Patricia Brooks, the Barrow County assistant district lawyer, described the daddy as a “narcissist” who created a facade that he was a very good mother or father. She argued that he purchased his son a rifle, lied about taking him to counseling, and purposely ignored warning indicators, like Colt Gray’s previous risk to shoot up a college and his bed room shrine devoted to high school shooters.
“We already live in a world where our teachers, our students, our law enforcement officers have to train for the possibility of an active shooter coming to their school,” Brooks stated Monday throughout her closing arguments. “It’s preposterous to say that they are the ones to blame for what happened on Sept. 4.”
The protection argued in its closing arguments that Colt Gray, who has pleaded not responsible to 4 counts of homicide, is the one one who ought to face costs, and that the jury shouldn’t “follow the DA down this slippery slope of attempting to hold parents criminally responsible for what their children do.”
Defense lawyer Jimmy Barry argued that his shopper didn’t know the extent of Colt Gray’s psychological points. Even if Colt Gray was taken to a counselor, Barry argued, he was “manipulative enough” to persuade the counselor that he was positive.
“Who would be able to foresee that a 14-year-old is going to take a black rifle … and stick it in a book bag, get on a bus, come to school, walk down the hall, go to class, put it down on the floor and not one single person sees it,” Barry stated.
Colin Gray stated in his Friday testimony that, in an effort to get his son away from the pc and bond with him, he took him deer searching and gifted him an AR-15-style rifle for Christmas 2023, nearly a 12 months earlier than the varsity capturing.
Colt Gray had solely began residing along with his father within the sixth grade. He had additionally been in bother earlier than the varsity capturing.
In May 2023, the FBI confirmed up at his dwelling as a result of Colt Gray had allegedly been concerned in a dialog on Discord about faculty shooters. Colin Gray stated he took the go to from police significantly, however finally, police advised him that many individuals have been within the dialog and that that they had traced an IP tackle to Russia or California. Colin Gray stated the investigator advised him to not give Colt Gray free entry to weapons.
Prosecutors pressed Colin Gray on his son’s habits, particularly within the sixth grade, when the boy searched on a pc “how to kill your dad.” The similar 12 months, he was suspended from faculty for drawing a swastika on a college calculator, leaving the cafeteria with out permission, and preventing with one other pupil. Colin Gray stated he wasn’t conscious in regards to the pc search till months later and he didn’t know in regards to the suspensions till the trial.
Still, when questioned in regards to the weapons in his dwelling, Colin Gray stated his son had a “healthy respect for weapons” and that he by no means made any threats with a gun. He described his son as a “good” and “compassionate kid” whom he by no means thought would perform a college capturing.
Marcee Gray, the mom of Colt Gray, painted a distinct image of the teenage boy. During her testimony on Feb. 23, she stated his habits at occasions was “alarming,” “aggressive,” “unpredictable,” and that he had “a lot of anger inside.”
On the morning of the varsity capturing, Colin Gray advised Marcee Gray that their son had despatched some unusual texts to him, so Marcee Gray referred to as the varsity to inform the varsity counselor about Colt Gray’s nervousness. The counselor advised her that her son’s first-period instructor had stated that he was asking about active-shooter drills. Marcee Gray stated she advised the counselor to go discover him.
Colt Gray then texted his mother, “I’m sorry.” He allegedly began capturing about half-hour later.
Colin Gray’s verdict comes a few 12 months after the decision of Jennifer and James Crumbley in Michigan, the place a jury discovered them responsible for involuntary manslaughter after their son killed 4 individuals in 2021 at Oxford High School.
Brad Smith, district lawyer for Barrow County, advised reporters Tuesday that he hopes this verdict strikes “the needle a little further” in stopping future faculty shootings.
He added that they thought of charging Marcee Gray as a result of what she did was “morally reprehensible.”
“We do not believe she’s a good mother in my opinion, but at the end of the day, she did not have custody of Colt, she did not have proximity to Colt, and she was not the one who provided him the firearm,” Smith stated.