Father of school shooter gets prison time for providing son the gun
Colin Gray was sentenced to 15 years in prison for gifting a gun to his son that was used in a 2024 mass shooting at a high school in Georgia.
Colin Gray, the Georgia father convicted after giving his teenage son the rifle used in a deadly high school shooting, is asking for a new trial less than a week after he was sentenced to 15 years in prison.
Gray, 55, was convicted in March on 27 charges stemming from the Sept. 4, 2024, shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia. Four people were killed: 14-year-old students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo and teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53.
Gray’s attorneys filed a motion Wednesday arguing that the jury’s verdict was not supported by the evidence, according to reports from AP and CBS News. They said the verdict was “contrary to evidence” and “strongly against the weight of the evidence,” as well as contrary to law and the principles of justice and equity.
Why was Colin Gray convicted?
Prosecutors argued Gray should have recognized the danger posed by his son, Colt Gray, and taken steps to prevent him from accessing firearms.
Colin Gray acknowledged during his trial that he gave Colt the semiautomatic rifle as a Christmas present. Prosecutors said he ignored warning signs about his son’s mental health and growing interest in school shootings.
Months before the shooting, a sheriff’s deputy urged Gray to secure his guns after authorities investigated an alleged online threat to commit a school shooting. Officials could not definitively determine whether Colt made the threat.
A jury convicted Gray of second-degree murder in the deaths of Schermerhorn and Angulo and involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of Aspinwall and Irimie. He was also convicted of reckless conduct and cruelty to children.
The case marked the first time in Georgia that a parent of a school shooter was charged and convicted in connection with the child’s attack.
What did the judge say at sentencing?
During Gray’s July 30 sentencing, Primm acknowledged the unusual nature of the case and said Gray did not intend to kill anyone.
But the judge said warning signs surrounding Colt had become increasingly difficult to ignore.
“It is clear you failed as a parent,” Primm said, according to CBS News.
Primm said Gray could have secured the family’s guns and ammunition, removed the weapons from the home or sought mental health treatment for his son.
Primm also noted that Gray did not intend to hurt anyone and was not the person who fired the gun.
“It matters that you didn’t seek to harm anyone,” Primm said. “It matters that you didn’t pull a trigger.”
What happened to Colt Gray?
Colt Gray, who was 14 when the shooting occurred, pleaded guilty in July to all 55 charges against him, including murder, aggravated assault and cruelty to children. Primm sentenced him to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Reporter Anthony Thompson can be reached at ajthompson16@gannett.com, or on X @athompsonUSAT