Colt Gray's father pleads not guilty to murder as son's attack on Appalache High School killed four

The begetter of a 14-year-old lad accused of carrying out mass shooting astatine a Georgia precocious schoolhouse has pleaded not blameworthy to a raft of charges.

Colin Gray did not look successful the Georgia tribunal connected Thursday, nevertheless his lawyers entered the plea connected his behalf and proceeded to waive a ceremonial arraignment.

The 54-year-old begetter was indicted connected 29 charges past month, including second-degree murder, manslaughter, cruelty to children and reckless conduct. 

Each complaint is successful transportation with his son's horrific Setember 4 onslaught astatine Appalache High School, wherever he allegedly opened occurrence connected students and staff, sidesplitting four.

Prosecutors person sought to represent Gray, who is being tried separately from his son, arsenic a negligent begetter who knowingly ignored his teen child's declining intelligence wellness and budding obsession with schoolhouse shootings.

Colin is accused of allowing his lad to person entree to the high-powered AR-style rifle utilized successful the onslaught - adjacent arsenic helium had 'knowledge that helium was a menace to himself and others.'

Witnesses successful the lawsuit person besides testified that the begetter purchased a laser sight, tactical vest and ammunition for his lad up of the deadly shooting.

At a preliminary proceeding for the 'negligent' father, an researcher testified that Colt had enactment up a 'shrine' successful his chamber of erstwhile schoolhouse shootings, including a photograph of Nikolas Cruz - the gunman successful the 2018 shooting astatine a precocious schoolhouse successful Parkland, Florida.

Prosecutors person besides called attraction to the information that Colin Gray did not telephone the precocious schoolhouse connected the greeting of the shooting, adjacent aft receiving disturbing substance messages from his son.

The charges travel astir 2 months aft Gray's son, 14-year-old Colt Gray, allegedly opened occurrence astatine his 1,900-student precocious school, sidesplitting 2 of his classmates, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, some 14, and 2 teachers, Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53. 

Another teacher and 8 much students were wounded successful the incursion, 7 of them deed by gunfire. 

That fateful morning, the teen allegedly hid the long-barreled weapon wrong of a poster committee neatly tucked successful his bookbag portion aboard a schoolhouse bus, a Georgia Bureau of Investigation cause said.

Colt Gray aboriginal near his second-period schoolroom and headed to the restroom with his backpack. The teen past exited the bath wearing gloves and acceptable with the poster committee successful beforehand of him, successful an effort to conceal the execution weapon, information footage revealed. 

He past approached the doorway of his mathematics people to get backmost in, but a pupil who went to fto him successful realized what was happening, backed up and told the teacher.

The teacher past went to the doorway window, told her students to hunker down successful the country of the schoolroom and initiated a lockdown, the GBI cause detailed.

Colt Gray past went connected to participate different schoolroom and started shooting his gun, hitting six to 7 radical successful the span of astir 7 seconds.

The shooter past went backmost to the bath astir 10:22 americium earlier firing aggregate shots astatine a teacher, the GBI cause added.

He past turned astir and changeable 2 coaches, earlier firing astatine a pupil who was exiting the bathroom, sidesplitting them.

Following that, 2 schoolhouse assets officers past approached the equipped teen and ordered him to enactment the weapon down.

According to the GBI agent, the teen near down a notebook erstwhile helium near for the bathroom. The notebook contained a elaborate program wrong of however helium was going to transportation retired the horrific crime, on with an estimation of however galore radical would dice and drawings of his classroom. 

Colt Gray was aboriginal arrested and charged the time pursuing the deadly shooting and has since been detained without enslaved astatine the Barrow County Detention Center. 

Last month, the disgraced teen entered a written plea of not blameworthy to each charges and faces beingness successful situation if convicted.

The grueling lawsuit marks the archetypal clip a genitor of an alleged schoolhouse shooter has been charged with murder. 

The 54-year-old father's indictment stands arsenic 1 of the latest examples of parents being held accountable for their children's actions successful schoolhouse shootings.

In 2021, parents of Oxford, Michigan student, Ethan Crumbley, who killed 4 students and injured 7 others - were the archetypal to beryllium convicted successful a US wide schoolhouse shooting. 

The pair, Jennifer and Jason Crumbley, were sentenced to astatine slightest 10 years successful situation for not securing a firearm astatine location and of 'acting indifferently' to signs of their son's declining intelligence wellness up of his brutal killings.