US school shooter pleads guilty in Georgia following father’s conviction

play Live Sign upShow navigation menuNavigation menuNewsShow more news sectionsAfricaAsiaUS & CanadaLatin AmericaEuropeAsia PacificMiddle EastExplainedSportOpinionVideoMoreShow more sectionsFeaturesEconomyHuman RightsClimate CrisisInvestigationsInteractivesIn PicturesScience & TechnologyPodcastsTravelSponsored Contentplay Live Click here to searchsearchSign upNavigation menucaret-leftTrendingUS-Israel war on IranTracking Israel's ceasefire violationsDonald Trumpcaret-rightNews|Gun ViolenceUS school shooter pleads guilty in Georgia following father’s convictionColt Gray pleads guilty to killing two students and two teachers in 2024 attack, which upped scrutiny of parental role. xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on GoogleinfoColt Gray, the Apalachee High School shooting suspect, walks into the court in Winder, Georgia [Jason Getz/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP]By Al Jazeera Staff and APPublished On 24 Jul 202624 Jul 2026A teenage suspect has pleaded guilty to 55 charges, including murder, for a 2024 school shooting in the US state of Georgia. The plea from Colt Gray, 16, came months after his father, Colin Gray, was convicted on charges of second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter. The case underscored how prosecutors in the US have increasingly interrogated the parental role in school shootings. The elder Gray was not present during the September 4, 2024 attack on Apalachee High School in Georgia, but had given his then 14-year-old the assault-style rifle he used to kill two students and two teachers. Those killed included Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14, as well as 39-year-old teacher Richard Aspinwall and 53-year-old teacher Cristina Irimie. Another teacher and eight more students were also wounded. Because Colt Gray pleaded guilty to murder, he faces a minimum sentence of life in prison. His trial was set to begin in mid-October. Before accepting the plea, Barrow County Superior Court Judge Nicholas Primm asked Gray a series of questions meant to ensure that the teenager was aware of the consequences of his plea and was entering it voluntarily. To each question, Gray responded: “Yes, your honour.” Breanna Schermerhorn, whose son Mason was killed, told the judge she did not forgive the 16-year-old suspect. She said that adults in Cole’s life had missed multiple warning signs, but she held him along responsible for the ultimate decision to go through with the shooting. “Those decisions were his and his alone,” she said. “Mason deserved a future, and we all deserved a future with Mason in it, and Colt took that from Mason and everyone who loved him,” she said. During Colin Gray’s trial, investigators testified that he was aware of his son’s deteriorating mental health and volatility, but he did not follow through on getting the needed help. Marcee Gray, Colt Gray’s mother, testified that she had urged Colin Gray to secure his weapons and restrict their son’s access to them. Following the attack, investigators found a shrine in Colt Gray’s bedroom to Nikolas Cruz, the attacker in the 2018 mass shooting at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, prosecutors said. The US, where its constitution protects the right to “bear arms”, has a high rate of school shootings. So far this year, there have been 64 incidents on school grounds, including shootings that took place outside of school hours, according to the advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety. That has resulted in 24 deaths and 32 injuries. Advertisement AboutAboutShow moreAbout UsCode of EthicsTerms and ConditionsEU/EEA Regulatory NoticePrivacy PolicyCookie PolicyCookie PreferencesAccessibility StatementSitemapWork for usConnectConnectShow moreContact UsUser Accounts HelpAdvertise with usStay ConnectedNewslettersChannel FinderTV SchedulePodcastsSubmit a TipPaid Partner ContentOur ChannelsOur ChannelsShow moreAl Jazeera ArabicAl Jazeera EnglishAl Jazeera Investigative UnitAl Jazeera MubasherAl Jazeera DocumentaryAl Jazeera BalkansAJ+Our NetworkOur NetworkShow moreAl Jazeera Centre for StudiesAl Jazeera Media InstituteLearn ArabicAl Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human RightsAl Jazeera ForumAl Jazeera Hotel PartnersFollow Al Jazeera English: