Grand jury indicts Colt and Colin Gray for Apalachee High School mass shooting

BARROW COUNTY, Ga. - A Barrow County grand jury has indicted Colt Gray, 14, and his father, Colin Gray, in connection with last month’s mass shooting at Apalachee High School. The indictment comes after the grand jury heard over two hours of testimony. 

District Attorney of the Piedmont Judicial Circuit, Brad Smith, announced that Colt Gray faces 55 charges, including four counts of murder, four counts of felony murder, four counts of aggravated battery, 25 counts of aggravated assault, and 18 counts of cruelty to children in the first degree. "This is a case with the most victims in any criminal case in the county," Smith stated. 

Colt’s father, Colin Gray, faces 29 charges, including second-degree murder, second-degree cruelty to children, involuntary manslaughter, and reckless conduct. Prosecutors allege that he saw warning signs of his son’s behavior but took no action and even purchased the firearm used in the shooting as a Christmas gift.  

"There are a total of 25 victims," Smith said. "Two teachers and two students were killed, and the 21 others were either physically injured or emotionally impacted." He added that of the 14 victims who were not physically injured, 13 were in the classroom when Colt allegedly opened fire, while one was in the hallway where Colt pointed the gun but did not fire. 

Smith said this will undoubtedly be the biggest case the region has seen, but it could hold precedent far beyond for holding parents legally accountable for their children's actions. "We hope this can start the process of healing for the community. The charged victims are the ones the crime was directed towards, but every person in that school was a victim," Smith said. 

RELATED: Shocking new details revealed in hearing for Apalachee HS shooting suspect’s father

Colt Gray, the alleged gunman, and his father, Colin Gray, have sought separate trials. The arraignment for both is set for Nov. 21. 

RELATED: Colin Gray not the first parent arrested after child accused of fatal shooting

Both are scheduled for arraignment on Nov. 21.

The GBI's timeline of the Apalachee High School shooting

At a court hearing for Colin Gray on Wednesday, agents with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) provided detailed testimony about events leading up to and during the shooting.

Taking the stand, the first GBI agent described how Colt Gray arrived at school and what he was carrying at the time – a backpack with a "rolled-up posterboard" inserted in the backpack. The agent said that Colt went to his first period class. Although he did take a bathroom break during the period, he did not appear to do anything abnormal.

During second period, Colt pulled out a black notebook or binder and placed it on his desk. He also used his phone briefly. At 9:45 a.m., he left the classroom to supposedly see the school counselor. When he left, he took his backpack with him, but left behind the black notebook. The notebook was later recovered by crime scene technicians. 

After leaving the classroom, the agent say Gray went to a student restroom in J Hall and entered one of the stalls. Items associated with Gray were later found in one of the stalls. A short time later, he left the restroom wearing yellow gloves and carrying the backpack with the posterboard "wrapped" around his torso. He went back to his second period class and knocked on the door. However, the student who stood up to open the door apparently saw something alarming and refused to open the door. The student then alerted the teacher, who initiated a lockdown procedure.

Gray then entered a nearby classroom and began firing. Multiple people were struck inside that classroom, including 14-year-old Christian Angulo who was killed.

After only 7 seconds of firing, Colt began running towards a set of bathrooms. Next, he was seen shouldering the rifle and shooting one of the teachers who was killed. Next, he turned towards I Hall and saw two coaches for the school and fired multiple times, killing one of the coaches and injuring the other.

MORE: What Apalachee High School shooting suspect Colt Gray did before shots fired

Colt Gray then turned his attention back to J Hall and surveillance video shows him trying to access other classrooms. It was at that time he encountered the second student who was killed and Gray cane seen shouldering his gun once again and opening fire.

A few seconds later, two school resource officers entered the hallway and ordered Gray to drop his gun. Gray immediately did so and was taken into custody. 

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Notebook and shrine found in Colt's home

Prosecutors argued that Colin Gray was aware that his son was obsessed with school shooters and knew Colt Gray had a shrine above his home computer for the gunman in the 2018 massacre in Parkland, Florida.

The "shrine of sorts" consisted of approximately 15 photographs and newspaper articles about past school shootings and school shooters.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation Agent Kelsey Ward said in court Wednesday that Colin Gray, 54, had asked his son who the people in pictures hanging on his wall were. One of them, Colt told his father, was Nikolas Cruz, the shooter in the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

During their investigation, the GBI learned from Colt's father, Colin Gray, that he had received unsettling text messages from both his daughter and ex-wife on the day of the shooting. After reading the texts, Colin said he went home and turned on the news, where he saw reports of the shooting at Colt’s school. He told investigators that he then went to Colt’s room to look for the AR-15-style rifle he had given him, only to find it missing.

In the notebook Colt had left behind at the school, one page included the labels "hallway" and "classroom" at the top.

In the hallway column, it says "I’m thinking 3 to 4 people killed. Injured? 4 to 5," GBI agent Lucas Beyer testified. "Under the classroom column is written 15 to 17 people killed, Injured? 2 to 3."

Colt joked about school shootings

In her interview with the GBI, the teenager's mother Marcee Gray expressed concern about her son's growing obsession with guns, which she said had worsened significantly in recent months. She also recounted conversations with Colt in which he referenced the Columbine High School and Sandy Hook Elementary shootings, sometimes making disturbing jokes about them. Marcee further stated that Colt had asked his father to buy him a shooter’s mask. When Colin asked why he needed the mask, Colt reportedly joked that it was to "finish his school shooter outfit."

MORE: Here's what Georgia school shooting suspect's father told FBI in 2023

Colt’s parents had discussed their son’s fascination with school shooters, but decided that it was in a joking context and not a serious issue, a GBI agent told the court.

A FOX 5 Atlanta I-Team investigation revealed Colt Gray’s tumultuous home life. According to police and court records, Colt lived with his father, while his two younger siblings lived with their mother. Last year, Marcee Gray was arrested for damaging her husband's truck. During the arrest, officers found methamphetamines, fentanyl, and a glass pipe in her possession, resulting in a 46-day jail sentence.

For Christmas before the shooting, Colin Gray purchased the weapon for his son, Barrow County sheriff’s investigator Jason Smith testified. Later, Colt asked his father for a larger magazine for the gun so it could hold more rounds and his father agreed, Smith said. Colin Gray also purchased the ammunition, Smith said.

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