Father of Georgia shooting suspect gave son an AR-15 style rifle as a gift, sources say
Category: News & Politics
Via: perrie-halpern • one month ago • 46 commentsBy: Janelle Griffith, Tom Winter, Andrew Blankstein and Jonathan Dienst
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The father of the 14-year-old charged with murder in the shooting at a high school in Georgia bought his son an AR-15 style rifle as a gift, according to two law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation.
The father gave his son the firearm at some point after the two had been interviewed by law enforcement in connection with threats to carry out a school shooting, the sources said.
Law enforcement officials did not arrest the teenager after that May 2023 interview because they could not tie him to an online account that had made the threats, according to newly released documents.
The teen, Colt Gray, fatally shot four people — two teachers and two students — on Wednesday at Apalachee High School in Winder on his first full day as a new student there, authorities said. He has been charged as an adult.
His father, Colin Gray, 54, was arrested on allegations that he allowed his son to possess a weapon, and charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said Thursday.
The teenage suspect had also shown interest in prior mass shootings, particularly the 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, according to two senior law enforcement officials briefed on the investigation.
The information came as a result of the searches conducted in the investigation into the shooting.
The Jackson County Sheriff's Office interviewed the teenager and his father after the FBI received a tip in May 2023 from a user on Discord, a chat platform popular with online video game enthusiasts, about online threats to commit a shooting at a middle school, according to investigative documents.
The FBI traced the Discord account to a person with the same name as the teen's father and referred the case to the sheriff's department in Jackson County, where the teen was enrolled at Jefferson Middle School, according to the documents.
The teenager said he wasn't familiar with Discord and did not play video games. The teen told the sheriff's office that he once had a Discord account but had deleted it. The teen denied making any online threats and "expressed concern that someone is accusing him of threatening to shoot up a school, stating that he would never say such a thing, even in a joking manner," the documents state.
The local authorities ultimately "cleared" the case because the FBI tip was inconsistent with the information discovered during their investigation, according to the documents.
Among the inconsistencies, according to the documents, was that the Discord account was associated with the teen's email address, but the phone number on the account did not match the teen's.
The account was traced to a series of possible IP addresses in Buffalo, New York, and in other parts of Georgia, including Fort Valley and Statesboro, where the teen had not lived, according to the investigative report.
The email associated with the user's profile name was written in Russian and translated to the last name of a school shooter. The teen's father told an investigator that neither he nor his son spoke Russian, the report said.
The teen said he was not active on Discord at the time the threat was made and had stopped using it because his account had been hacked multiple times "and he was afraid someone would use his information for nefarious purposes," according to the report.
The law enforcement official told the teen's dad that he could not substantiate the tip from the FBI or that the father or son was behind the Discord account that made the threat. The case was then cleared, but Jackson County authorities "alerted local schools for continued monitoring of the subject," the FBI said Wednesday.
It is not clear whether Barrow County schools were also aware of the investigation or were "monitoring" when the teen enrolled there last month.
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said Thursday that the teen was new to Barrow County schools, having enrolled two weeks ago. Wednesday was his second day at Apalachee High School and his first full day, Smith said.
In an interview with NBC News on Thursday, Smith said the sheriff's office learned about last year's investigation on Wednesday, about two hours after the shooting.
Smith said he was confident that the previous tips had been investigated properly by the FBI and local law enforcement.
"Local authorities went to the house, interviewed him, interviewed his father, they did a report, they did what they were supposed to do, and found that there was no proper cause" to arrest him, Smith said. "Regardless of the situation, all of us have civil rights. He didn't commit a crime. He made a comment. It was unfounded at the time."
But Isaiah Hooks, 15, a football player at the high school said it was difficult to swallow news that some authorities were aware of and monitoring the teen.
"It's even harder just to think of, to accept, that somebody that could have done this when the FBI knew who he was, that he was capable of this. I lost my coach and classmates and friends who were hurt right across from the room I was in," Hooks said. "I just feel like that person shouldn't have been able to even be around a school. His threat should have been included in his transcript or something. This should have been prevented since they knew he could do something like this."
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Good.
Any sentences resulting should be served consecutively, not concurrently.
The father is facing a 180 year prison sentence.
looks like he'll be bonding with junior in the big house now ...
looks like dad will be set up with ramen and velveeta for life...
I kind of agree with this, though it is a slippery slope.
In what way?
Clearly in this case, the parents had a lot not only to him having the means but screwing this kid up. The mother who wasn't living with them was a drug addict and a thief. She used to lock the kid out of the house. That is why I tend to agree with holding them responsible.
The slippery slope comes in when you start holding parents responsible for other crimes. Once we go down this road where does it end?
I can kind of agree but not fully. In this case, it's obvious from what information has been released that the kid had issues and had been asking for help. The father (who had custody) not only did little to help the kid but also provided the gun. Seems like lots of red flags were missed by adults who should be watching for these things. The mother, while also responsible for how screwed up the kid was, may actually not be charged with anything as she was not the custody parent and so far we don't have information (that I've seen) for how much she was around the kid.
Look at child deaths due to hot cars. How often are the parents excused from any charged due to "they have already suffered". Sorry but I'm all for holding the adults responsible when they screw up and forgetting you have a child in the back seat just is not forgivable to me.
I'm hoping that with the Michigan school shooting where the parents where charged and sentenced, and in this case, that more people start looking at their potential liability and so the harder task can begin that might actually reduce these mass shootings. We had mentally ill people and lots of guns in the past, but we also had adults who were responsible parents. Today we have idiots who are so wrapped up in their own lives that they ignore the more important part of having children, the raising of these children. We cannot ignore these red flags and allow our children to grow up as feral cats, they must be properly raised by parents who are present. Just banning a type of gun will do little to impact these shootings I'm afraid. It's past time when the harder work is started.
People on social media sites sometimes quickly jump to the wrong conclusions...without knowing all the details.
Sound familiar?
For example, the kid was constantly bullied at school-- and no help was available. Part of the familiy separated.
I just came across an article that goes into this in greater depth:
The mother of the 14-year-old suspect in a deadly shooting at a Georgia high school was arrested last year on family violence charges.
At home, the teen struggled after his parents separated and his family was evicted from their home, which separated him from his two younger siblings, the transcripts show.
Why was no help available?
You mean their minor children. MINOR children. Until they are adults, children are their parents responsibility. PERIOD.
So you agree that parents should have the final word in how their children are raised and educated?
I guess so.
Sound familiar?
You mean like the Russia hoax.
I just came across an article that goes into this in greater depth:
I'm well aware of all of it including his concern for transgenders. Tell us about that.
We say that a lot. How many teachers intervene when they see bullying?
The mother, while also responsible for how screwed up the kid was, may actually not be charged with anything as she was not the custody parent and so far we don't have information (that I've seen) for how much she was around the kid.
That is true, but this may have been a case for social services.
Look at child deaths due to hot cars. How often are the parents excused from any charged due to "they have already suffered". Sorry but I'm all for holding the adults responsible when they screw up and forgetting you have a child in the back seat just is not forgivable to me.
There is a lot to that. Every time we drive our kids around, we are not only responsible for their safety, but the way we drive may one day influence their driving.
I'm hoping that with the Michigan school shooting where the parents where charged and sentenced, and in this case, that more people start looking at their potential liability and so the harder task can begin that might actually reduce these mass shootings. We had mentally ill people and lots of guns in the past, but we also had adults who were responsible parents. Today we have idiots who are so wrapped up in their own lives that they ignore the more important part of having children, the raising of these children. We cannot ignore these red flags and allow our children to grow up as feral cats, they must be properly raised by parents who are present. Just banning a type of gun will do little to impact these shootings I'm afraid. It's past time when the harder work is started.
I will add to that the people who really shouldn't have kids.
Wasn't a hoax and you know it.
He is going to be put on trial as an adult.
Good!
Police visits resulting from FBI information and reports the boy had mental issues and father buys boy a gun, he is guilty of something. For sure. Some people should not have kids.
It is strange he was new to this school, so this was not caused by way he was treated there or bullying or a grudge.
Also, he had an interest in school shootings
I had a gun when I was a boy but all guns were in my Father's closet and I did not go in there
Single shot?
I think iI held 3 shells and a .22 that held about 10, I don't have either one now
Valid point.
This may shed more light on it:
Colt Gray, the suspected shooter accused of killing four at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, reportedly posted on social media about his plans to carry out a mass shooting over his "frustration with the acceptance of transgender people."
Suspected Georgia School Shooter Was Reportedly Angry Over 'Trans Acceptance' (townhall.com)
I'm surprised it got out.
I don't think shooting up a school will make people more likely to accept transgenders
He wasn't acting in support of transgender people
That quote is from your link.
I know. It is missing the words lack of:
New reports indicate that messages from an account on Discord, a private group messaging platform, that's been linked to the 14-year-old Apalachee High School shooter expressed frustration at the lack of acceptance of transgender people in society.
Georgia School Shooting: Discord Posts Reveal Frustration Over Trans Acceptance (mrctv.org)
It seems that 5 people didn't know or are being disingenuous.
Your new link is not supported by your previous link, which specifies that CNN clarified its statement.
Which of your links do you choose to believe? Here is CNN, the source Town Hall used.
I'm going with this:
While CNN did their best to vague up exactly where the account user stood on the trans issue, the Post Millennial points out that a transcript of a conversation between the shooter's father, Colin Gray, and investigators from back in 2023 shows Gray claimed his son was being bullied at school for being "queer."
Georgia School Shooting: Discord Posts Reveal Frustration Over Trans Acceptance (mrctv.org)
It's always a good idea to read the entire linked article.
And I'm going with this:
It's an even better idea to stop persecuting gay and trans kids.
So, both link cite CNN as a source, and one updated to include CNN's clarification. You are going with the source that cited CNN, but didn't update to include CNN's clarification?
Basically, you're going with the source that didn't read its source.
Mmmkay.
Dad says he was bullied for being "queer", which seems in pretty much every source to mean "gay". Not "trans". You know that not all gay people support trans people, right? We also don't even know that Colt was gay. Other kids called him gay as taunts.
Nice thoughts, though unrelated to the trans issue this kid raised or the stunt CNN tried to pull.
Actually, THEY DID and THEY CALLED OUT CNN.
You know that not all gay people support trans people, right?
I don't know, but I do know that Audrey Hale was transgender.
How? They accused CNN of being vague about Colt's opposition to transgender acceptance, and in support, said that Colt was bullied for being "queer". Their quote of CNN still says:
That's a non sequitur.
He can be bullied with taunts about being gay, whether he was or not, and also oppose acceptance of trans people. One does not preclude the other.
Ok, and?
Most school shooters, and indeed most mass shooters in general, have been white males, as is Colt Gray.
Should that fact be given significance?
“Most shooters and accused shooters are either White (37 percent) or Black (29 percent), followed by Hispanic/Latino (14 percent), Asian/Pacific Islander (5 percent) and Native American (1 percent). The remaining 10 percent are of another race or their race is not available.”
White Americans are 59.2% while Blacks are 12.2.
So true. The 'right' goes out of their way to demonize LGBTQ+ people constantly and makes laws AGAINST them.
Always a deflection.
Lot of angry white males out there killing people.
Of course the father was totally wrong in giving him a gun.
But the fact is, he was constantly bulled at school-- and no help was available. (I just found an article that gives a fuller picture of the situation)
Very wrong and looks like he is going to be held accountable for a bad decision.
"Constantly bulled at school"-: Way I read things, he was new to this school and had been thinking about doing this for some time
This type of action is relatively new and is bolstered by the conviction and sentencing of Jennifer & James Crumbley as the first parents convicted in a U.S. mass school shooting up in Michigan. I mentioned the other day that I thought the father was open to legal action due to the FBI flagging and police interview last year of their son. As more information has come out, it's very obvious that this father failed in his duties for raising his son.
This, I believe, is the bigger piece of the puzzle around mass shootings. We have too many parents who are so wrapped up in their own lives that they have become very disinterested and unengaged in the lives of their children. Holding the parents responsible may finally be what is needed to change the behaviors we see in this country. But IMO the main-stream media needs to push this information out everywhere. This trial and sentencing should be live-streamed and repeated so that nobody can ignore it because this needs to break thru the years of self-absorption that the parents in this country have allowed to overtake common sense.
This boy had provided several red flags and I believe as more evidence comes out, this boy will show definite signs of mental illness of some sort. But was anything done to provide the help he needed? How many times did the adults around him (family, friends and school at a minimum) fail to do anything other than just move him along.
As many others here, when I was a boy we had several guns in the house and they were not locked up. But my parents were very involved in my life and I was taught from an early age what was proper and correct to do and what was off-limits. My parents were not self-involved and absent, they were present in my daily life.
It's a sad state of affairs when the first thoughts after an incident like this is from those who call for the restrictions on guns. Common sense should tell everybody that if one type of gun is not available then the issues can and will continue with a different type of gun. Hell, the worst school massacre in the history of this country did not use a single firearm.
IMO it's way past time to stop the constant bleating over "gun control" and start to do the hard work that can actually make a difference in this.
Dad probably did it to own the libs and brag about his gift to his 13 year old dumbass kid. Now he is shitting bricks in front of a judge who will likely be throwing his dumb ass in prison along with his dumbass kid.
psychiatric help for his son was too expensive and inconvenient, so daddy went to the gun store instead...
Morning..sort of says it all doesn't it..
Wonder if the father had it gift wrapped and did it come in blue?
I've seen a few news articles suggesting the kid was accused of being gay and being bullied.
He was constantly bullied-- and no help was available. And his situation at home was horrendous.
Anything else?