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BARROW COUNTY, Ga. - Testimony is set to continue Tuesday in the trial of Colin Gray, the father of the teenager accused in the 2024 Apalachee High School shooting, after jurors heard emotional testimony from the boy’s mother to open the second week of proceedings.
What they're saying:
Marcee Gray testified Monday that she urged Colin Gray to secure the guns in their home and keep them out of reach of their son, Colt Gray, before the Sept. 4, 2024, shooting in Winder.
"They need to be locked somewhere," she told jurors. "Initially, he said he would."
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Colin Gray faces 29 counts, including two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutors allege he should be held accountable for giving his son the semiautomatic rifle used in the shooting as a Christmas gift, despite warning signs about the teen’s mental health.
Colt Gray, who was 14 at the time, faces 55 counts, including murder in the deaths of two teachers and two students, along with 25 counts of aggravated assault. Investigators said he brought the rifle to school in his book bag, with the barrel wrapped in poster board, left his second-period class and opened fire in a classroom and hallways.
Marcee Gray testified that her son had shown interest in Nikolas Cruz, who was convicted in the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida. She said she believed Colt’s interest was similar to her own interest in true crime.
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Prosecutors have said Colin Gray continued to buy accessories for the rifle, including "a lot of ammunition," and failed to follow through on concerns about his son’s deteriorating mental health. An investigator previously testified that Colin Gray sought counseling services weeks before the shooting and wrote, "We have had a very difficult past couple of years and he needs help. Anger, anxiety, quick to be volatile. I don’t know what to do."
Defense attorney Brian Hobbs has argued that the shooting was hidden from Colin Gray.
"That’s the difference between tragedy and criminal liability," Hobbs said previously. "You cannot hold someone criminally responsible for failing to predict what was intentionally hidden from them."
What's next:
Testimony is expected to resume Tuesday as jurors continue to hear evidence in the closely watched case.