Dad of accused school shooter found guilty
By: N'dea Yancey-Bragg
USA Today
..... A father whose son is caused of fatally shooting two teachers and two classmates at a Georgia high school in 2024 was found guilty of murder, manslaughter and other charges after providing the gun allegedly use in the shooting.
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Colin Gray, 55, testified during the 11-day trail that he gave his son. Colt Gray, the rifle prosecutors say was used in the attack at Apalachee High School as a Christmas present.
..... Mason Schermerehorn and Christian Augulo, both 14, and teachers Richard Aspinwall and Christina Irimie were killed in the shooting, which shocked the tight-knit rural community. Seven others were wounded.
..... Prosecutors argued that the father should have known the danger his son posed. The case was "about who armed Colt and who enabled him to do what he did," prosecutor Patricia Brooks told jurors in her closing arguments.
..... Colin Gray had pleaded not guilty. He took the stand in his own defense saying that he was trying to be a good father in a broken home and had no idea his son was capable of carrying out a mass shooting.
..... "I struggle with it everyday," he said during the emotional testimony.
..... After less than tow hours of deliberations, the jury convicted Garry on 29 counts including second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, reckless conduct and cruelty to children. the most serious charge, second-degree murder, is punishable by up to 30 years in prison in Georgia.
..... The charges marked the first time in Georgia history a parent of a school shooting suspect was charged in connection with the crime, according to Barrow County district Attorney Brad Smit, who prosecuted the case. Prosecutors were able to charge Gray with murder because of Georgia's unusual second-degree murder law, which went into effect in 2014.
.... The father was charged just months after Jennifer and James Crumbley, the parents of a 15-year-old who killed four classmates at a Michigan High School, were convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison. Legal experts told USA Today that as with the Crumbly case, the Georgia conviction could encourage more prosecutors to pursue similar cases.
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"The guilty verdict of Colin Gray, following those of Jennifer and James Crumbley, sends a clear message gun owners who recklessly arm a child in crisis will be held accountable. When three out of four school shooters get their firearms from the home, these tragedies are not just predictable - they are preventable," Nick Suplina, senior vice president of law and policy at Everytown for Gun Safety, said in a statement. "this isn't about pushing every parent; it's about the life-and-death duty of adults to keep weapons out of the hands of children."
..... The younger Gray is facing 55 charges, inlcuding murder, agggravated assualt and cruelty to children. His case remains pending, although defense lawyers previously indicated that a plea agreement was in the works with the district attorney's office.
..... Contributing: Reuters.