Colin Gray, 54, the father of a 14-year-old boy accused of fatally shooting four individuals at a high school in Georgia, has been detained and faces murder charges.
Authorities have charged him with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder, and eight counts of cruelty to children. Officials have stated that these charges are directly linked to his son’s actions and allowing the possession of a weapon.
Colt Gray, the son, is facing four counts of murder as an adult following the shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, near Atlanta. In Georgia, certain crimes allow minors as young as 13 to be charged as adults, potentially leading to more severe sentences if convicted.
The charges against the father are believed to be among the most severe levied against a parent in this type of case.
Witnesses reported that the suspect had left an algebra class on the morning of the shooting, only to return later and attempt to re-enter the classroom. When some students approached the locked door, they saw the weapon and moved away. It was then that witnesses heard a series of 10-15 gunshots. Two school police officers promptly confronted the boy, leading to his immediate surrender.
This recent case is not the first to involve charges against the parents of a suspect in a school shooting. In April, the parents of a Michigan teenager who fatally shot four students with a gun they bought for him just days before the shooting were sentenced for their role in the attack.