Accused Apalachee High School shooter's troubled home life, potential warning signs

BARROW COUNTY, Ga. - New information has surfaced about Colt Gray, a ninth grader accused of opening fire inside Apalachee High School on Wednesday morning, killing two teachers, two students, and injuring nine others. The details shed new light on potential warning signs missed prior to the tragic events. 

The FOX 5 I-Team has reviewed public records and obtained a recording of an interview between Colt Gray, his father Colon Gray, and the Jackson County Sheriff's Office. The interview took place after the FBI received a tip in 2023 regarding a threat to shoot up a school, allegedly made on a gaming app. 

Investigator: "Do you have weapons in the house? 

Colin Gray: "I do. I do." 

Investigator: "Accessible to him?" 

Colin: "They are, I mean there’s nothing loaded, but they are down." 

Investigator: "OK." 

Colin: "We actually, we do a lot of shooting, we do a lot of deer hunting, he shot his first deer this year." 

The emerging details paint a troubling picture of a fractured family life. According to police and court records, Colt Gray's home situation was tumultuous. Colt lived with his father, while his two younger siblings resided with their mother, Marcee Gray. Last year, Marcee Gray was arrested for scratching her husband’s truck, and during the arrest, officers found methamphetamines, fentanyl, and a glass pipe in her possession. She was sentenced to 46 days in jail. 

SEE ALSO: Apalachee High School shooting | What we know about the suspected shooter

In a separate incident, Jackson County sheriff’s investigators visited the Gray household following an FBI tip related to the school threat. At the time, Colt, then 13, denied making the threats, according to incident reports. 

During the interview, his father admitted there were guns in the house but stated they were not loaded. Colin Gray described taking his son hunting, explaining his effort to encourage Colt to spend more time outdoors and less time playing video games. 

"I don’t know, like I don't know anything about him saying s--- like that. I’m going to be mad as hell if he did. And then all the guns will go away. And they won’t be accessible to him. You know, I’m trying to be honest with you, I’m trying to teach him about firearms and safety, and how to do it all, getting him interested in the outdoors," Colin Gray told investigators during the same interview. 

While authorities were unable to substantiate the tip, the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office reportedly alerted local schools to monitor Colt Gray. An email obtained by FOX 5 shows a sheriff’s captain informing the FBI, "We have made area schools aware and will monitor this subject." 

However, Colt later moved with his father to a different county, enrolling in Apalachee High School in Barrow County. It remains unclear whether the alert from Jackson County was communicated to Colt’s new school, or what "monitoring" would have entailed in this situation. 

Colt Gray is being charged with four counts of felony murder.

Colin Gray has now been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder, and eight counts of cruelty to children.