The mother of the teenager charged with fatally shooting two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, contacted the school just hours before the attack. Marcee Gray, the mother of 14-year-old Colt Gray, the suspected shooter, called a counselor at the school on Wednesday morning, warning of an “extreme emergency” and urging them to find her son immediately.
According to the Washington Post, phone records provided by a relative show a 10-minute call to the school at 9:50 a.m., about 30 minutes before the shooting began. Marcee Gray declined to specify the details of her call, but she has confirmed to the Post that she shared those details with law enforcement. She expressed deep remorse for the “pain and suffering” endured by the victims and their families.
A school administrator reportedly visited Colt Gray’s math class that morning, but he was not present. Following the shooting, Colt Gray was charged as an adult with four counts of murder.
The case has taken a complex turn, with authorities also charging Colt Gray’s father, Colin Gray, with murder, involuntary manslaughter, and cruelty to children. Prosecutors allege that Colin Gray provided the weapon used in the shooting, potentially setting the stage for a legal precedent holding parents accountable for allowing minors access to firearms.
Investigators from a neighboring county had previously interviewed both Colin and Colt Gray in May 2023 regarding online threats of a school shooting. While Colt Gray denied making the threats, and his father claimed his son did not have access to his hunting rifles, the investigation was closed due to a lack of substantiating evidence linking either Gray to the threats.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is currently leading the investigation into the shooting, with the Piedmont Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office prosecuting the case. As the investigation unfolds, the focus will likely remain on the events leading up to the tragedy and the potential role of the parents in the unfolding events.
