The mother of the suspect in last week’s Georgia shooting contacted the school to report an “extreme emergency” and requested that they check on her son on the day of the attack, according to US media reports.
Both the suspect’s mother and grandmother were in touch with the school prior to the shooting. Colt Gray, 14, is charged with carrying out a shooting at Apalachee High School that resulted in four deaths and nine injuries. He faces four counts of first-degree murder.
This information comes in the wake of additional charges against the suspect’s father, Colin Gray, who has been charged with second-degree murder, manslaughter, and child cruelty. Authorities accuse him of allowing his son to possess an AR-15 style rifle.
Both father and son appeared in court on Friday, but neither entered a plea.
The Washington Post reported that Marcee Gray, the boy’s mother, sent text messages to her sister indicating that she had informed the school counselor of an emergency and requested immediate attention for her son.
“I was the one that notified the school counsellor at the high school,” Ms. Gray wrote. “I told them it was an extreme emergency and for them to go immediately and find [my son] to check on him.”
The reason for her contacting the school remains unclear.
The suspect’s aunt, Annie Brown, provided the text messages and call logs to the Post, and Ms. Gray later confirmed the records. Brown also verified the text exchanges to other US media outlets.
Phone records reveal that Ms. Gray called the school about half an hour before the shooting began. According to the Post, there was some confusion when a school administrator went to check on the boy, as another student had a similar name.
In a separate report, Charlie Polhamus, Colt Gray’s grandfather, told CBS News that the boy’s grandmother had spoken with school officials earlier that week. “My wife had gone up there…the day before and met with the teachers to address some problems with him not attending school and other issues,” he said.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which is handling the case, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Similarly, the Barrow County School System has yet to comment on the reports.
Colt Gray is accused of shooting and killing two 14-year-olds, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, as well as teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53.
In the months leading up to the shooting, Colt Gray faced mental health struggles and difficulties at home, according to Ms. Brown, who spoke to the Washington Post. The FBI also reported that police interviewed the boy in May 2023 regarding anonymous online threats to commit a school shooting. Gray denied any involvement.
Vigils have been held to honor the victims, and mourners have created a memorial of flowers, candles, and balloons outside Apalachee High School.
