Georgia shooter's mother warned school about son 30 minutes before shooting

Sept. 9, 2024
The mother of the Georgia teenager accused of killing four people at his high school says she warned school administrators before the shooting.

The mother of the Georgia teenager accused of killing four people at his high school says she warned school administrators before the shooting.

Marcee Gray told relatives she had notified a school counselor about 30 minutes before her 14-year-old son, Colt Gray, allegedly fatally shot two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School, the Washington Post reported.

“I was the one that notified the school counselor at the high school,” she texted her sister, Annie Brown, according to screenshots obtained by The Post. “I told them it was an extreme emergency and for them to go immediately and find (my son) to check on him.”

Marcee Gray confirmed to The Post she reached out to the school.

“I am so, so sorry and can not fathom the pain and suffering they are going through right now,” she texted The Post.

Students said an administrator entered Colt Gray’s math class following the alert but he was not there. The administrator reportedly asked about a student with a similar name and took that student’s backpack from the room.

Minutes later, Gray opened fire, according to authorities, killing 14-year-old students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo and teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53.

Police responded within minutes and arrested Gray, who surrendered without incident. He made his first court appearance on Friday but did not enter a plea.

Gray’s father, Colin Gray, was also charged with second-degree murder for buying his son the assault-style rifle he used in the shooting, according to police. The Gray parents separated in 2023, with Colt living with his father while his two younger siblings lived with their mother.

A neighbor described Colt’s home life as “absolutely horrible,” and at least one student said he fit the stereotype of a school shooter.

Investigators learned Gray was interested in prior school shootings, including the 2018 Parkland, Fla., shooting and the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary shooting in Newtown, Conn.

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