On September 4th, 2024, a devastating shooting took place at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia. The shooting took four lives–two 9th graders and two teachers. In addition, nine people were injured– eight students and one teacher. The suspect in the shooting is 14-year-old Colt Gray. According to CNN, this marks the 45th school shooting in the United States this year.
Questions were raised regarding how Gray acquired the weapon. As per Fox Atlanta, Barry County Sheriff Jud Smith confirmed that Gray received the gun from his father, 54-year-old Colin Gray, as a Christmas gift last December. According to CBS News, the weapon Gray used, an AR rifle, is a gun that is commonly used in school shootings, such as the Robb Elementary School shooting in Texas, and the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. Colin Gray is being charged with two counts of second-degree murder, and eight counts of cruelty to children. BBC writes how these charges are the most severe against a parent of this type of case. Colt Gray is being charged as an adult, with four counts of felony murder.
There were several warnings prior to the shooting, shown in previous threats made by the suspect and a morning-of warning from the mother. In May 2023, local police were warned regarding online threats of a school shooting, the email tying back to suspect Colt Gray. When the sheriff’s Deputy arrived at the suspect’s house, Colin Gray stated they had guns stored in the house, however, they were inaccessible to the suspect. In addition, the BBC writes how the deputy interviewing the suspect described him as “‘reserved’ and ‘calm’ and said he ‘assured me he never made any threats to shoot up any school,’” eventually dismissing the case. Moreover, on the morning of the shooting, the mother of Colt Gray, Marcee Gray, received a message from the suspect that read “I’m sorry, Mom.” She then called the school at 9:50 a.m., speaking with a counselor for 10 minutes regarding an “extreme emergency” pertaining to her son: “Go immediately and find Colt to check on him.” CNN writes that despite the warnings, police responded to the active shooting at 10:20 a.m. However, Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith claims there were no prior warnings regarding a threat, raising questions regarding the reliability of law enforcement in preventing such a tragedy.
In an interview by the New York Post with the suspect’s grandfather, Charles Polhamus, Polhamus stated that Colin Gray, the suspect’s father, should bear much responsibility for the atrocities committed at Apalachee High School: “Spending 11 years with that son of a [expletive] screaming and hollering every day — it can affect anybody.” Polhamus adds how the environment the suspect was raised in by his father had a role in the shooting: “Colt has to pay for what he did, but I’m telling you, he was driven, no question in my mind. He was driven by his father to do what he did. That’s as plain as I can put it, and I know I’m right.” Polhamus declares that Colin Gray “got what he deserved” pertaining to the second-degree murder and cruelty to children charges and how Gray “needs the death penalty.”
In the wake of the horrible tragedy, the community bands together to memorialize the victims: Cristina Irimie, Richard Aspinwall, Mason Schermerhorn, and Christian Angulo. In an interview by CNN, Mason Schermerhon’s spirit is kept alive by his friends and family. Family friend Rebbecca Good describes the 14-year-old boy as “a funny, creative kid who loved to give big hugs.” Good stated, “He should have lived a long life of making others smile.” Moreover, Schermerhorn’s sister Alanna, spoke of his happy nature to WAGA: “He loved everyone, no matter what they had or what disabilities they had; he loved everyone for who they were.”
The shooting has echoed many previous pleas regarding gun control to protect the safety of Americans. Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens wrote in a statement from Atlanta News First discussing the prominence of gun control: “The violence in Winder wasn’t only caused by the actions of one deranged individual. They were aided by the intentional inaction of policymakers throughout the government.” It’s important to note that Georgia, according to Every Town Research, has “some of the weakest gun laws in the country.” Dickens continues, calling for action by lawmakers: “Unless we reduce access to guns by enacting common sense legislation, the gun violence epidemic will continue to plague us, and worse, our children will continue to pay the price.” However, the same sentiment was not shared with Georgia Governor Brian Kemp in a press conference. When asked about what could be done to prevent further school shootings, he stated, “Today is not the day for politics or policy.” Further adding, “Today is the day for an investigation, to mourn these precious Georgians that we have lost.”
School shootings in the United States are an unfortunate but uncommon phenomenon in the United States. As stated by CNN, there have been 45 shootings in the USA since the beginning of 2024. This tragedy has severely impacted the Apalachee High School community, and there is hope that lawmakers will take decisive action to prevent such a tragedy from occurring again.
