Georgia Students Relive School Shooting Horror as Father's Trial Begins
Georgia high school students took the stand on Tuesday, recounting through tears the sheer terror of being shot during their algebra class two years ago. They described seeing a classmate lying in a pool of blood, discovering blood on their own bodies, and fearing for their lives in the chaotic aftermath of the September 4, 2024, shooting northeast of Atlanta. The attack left two teachers and two students dead, with several others wounded, as investigators said the accused shooter, Colt Gray, had meticulously planned the assault.
Father Faces Charges in Landmark Case
This trial of Colin Gray, Colt Gray's father, represents one of several national cases where prosecutors are attempting to hold parents criminally responsible after their children are accused in fatal shootings. Barrow County District Attorney Brad Smith argued in his opening statement on Monday that Colin Gray should be held accountable for providing the weapon despite multiple warnings about alleged threats his son had made. "This case is about this defendant and his actions in allowing a child that he has custody over access to a firearm and ammunition after being warned that that child was going to harm others," Smith told the court.
Prosecutors contend that this amounts to cruelty to children, with second-degree murder defined under Georgia law as causing the death of a child by committing such a crime. However, defense attorney Brian Hobbs countered, asserting that the shooting's planning and timing "were hidden by Colt Gray from his father." Hobbs emphasized, "That's the difference between tragedy and criminal liability. You cannot hold someone criminally responsible for failing to predict what was intentionally hidden from them."
Chilling Testimony from Young Survivors
A ninth-grade girl testified on Tuesday, recalling how she saw a hole in her wrist and began screaming moments after the gunfire erupted in her Algebra I class. "I was also worried that I was going to die and how that would affect my parents because my dad has a heart problem," she said emotionally. As paramedics carried her out of the school building, she saw Colt Gray on the floor with his hands behind his back and screamed obscenities at him as she passed. "I remember yelling at him that we were kids, because we were kids," she recounted. Due to their young ages, the faces of her and other testifying students were not shown during the video livestream of the proceedings.
Colt Gray, who was 14 years old at the time of the shooting, now 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 incident. Investigators detailed how he boarded a school bus with a semiautomatic rifle in his book bag, the barrel sticking out and wrapped in poster board. He later left his second-period class, emerged from a bathroom with the gun, and proceeded to shoot people in a classroom and hallways.
Pattern of Warnings Ignored, Prosecutors Allege
Prosecutors presented evidence suggesting a pattern of ignored warnings. In September 2021, Colt Gray used a school computer to search the phrase, "how to kill your dad," prompting school resource officers to visit the home, though it was later deemed a "misunderstanding." Sixteen months before the shooting, in May 2023, law enforcement acted on an FBI tip about an online shooting threat concerning an elementary school, which was traced to a computer at the Gray home. Colin Gray was informed of this threat and asked if his son had access to guns, replying that he and his son "take this school shooting stuff very seriously." Colt Gray denied making the threat, claiming his online account had been hacked.
Despite these red flags, Colin Gray gave his son the gun as a Christmas gift and continued to purchase accessories, including "a lot of ammunition," according to Smith. Prosecutors also noted that Colin Gray knew his son was obsessed with school shooters, even maintaining a shrine in his bedroom to Nikolas Cruz, the perpetrator of the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre in Parkland, Florida. A Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent testified that the teen's parents had discussed his fascination but dismissed it as joking and not serious.
Three weeks before the shooting, Colin Gray received a chilling text from his son: "Whenever something happens, just know the blood is on your hands." Additionally, an investigator testified that Colin Gray was aware his son's mental health had deteriorated and had sought help from a counseling service weeks prior, writing, "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." However, Smith highlighted that Colin Gray never followed through on concerns about getting his son admitted to an in-patient facility.
This trial underscores broader debates over parental accountability in gun violence cases, as communities grapple with the lasting trauma inflicted by such tragedies. The proceedings continue to unfold, with further testimony expected in the coming days.
