Prosecutors Decline to Charge Mother in Apalachee High School Shooting

On September 4, 2024, Colt Gray, then 15, opened fire at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, killing two students—Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo—and two teachers, Richard Aspinwall and Cristina Irimie. The teen pleaded guilty to 55 counts and received a life-without-parole sentence plus an additional 20 years. His father, Colin Gray, was convicted in March 2026 of 27 counts, including second-degree murder for providing the SIG M400 rifle used in the attack, and was sentenced to 15 years in prison on July 30, 2026.

Apalachee School Shooter’s Father Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Providing Assault Rifle Used by Son in Attack CNN

Marcee Gray, the shooter’s mother, has a prior criminal record that includes a 2023 trespassing conviction at her estranged husband’s home. Prior to the shooting she lost custody of her children and was under probation conditions that barred her from Barrow County.

CNN

Barrow County District Attorney Brad Smith explained that prosecutors could not establish a proximate causal link between Marcee Gray’s actions and the killings. Smith also said the state lacks the legal basis under Georgia’s proximate-cause statute to charge her.

CNN

The Department of Juvenile Justice terminated Marcee Gray’s communication with her son after discovering the exchange of mass-shooter imagery, and the state subsequently terminated her parental rights, placing Colt in foster care while he remained in custody.

CNN

• Victims: 4 (two students, two teachers)

Apalachee School Shooter’s Father Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Providing Assault Rifle Used by Son in Attack

• Colt Gray sentence: life without parole + 20 years

CNN

• Colin Gray sentence: 15 years (concurrent counts)

Apalachee School Shooter’s Father Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Providing Assault Rifle Used by Son in Attack

• Marcee Gray: no criminal charges filed; parental rights terminated

CNN

Family members of the victims expressed dissatisfaction with the decision not to prosecute the mother.

Apalachee School Shooter’s Father Sentenced to 15 Years in Prison for Providing Assault Rifle Used by Son in Attack

• “She took some steps – not many – but some steps to actually have the firearms removed, or ask the father to do that,” — Brad Smith, county district attorney

CNN

• “If a person in your facility was trying to get around that and pick particular photos that wouldn’t be as noticeable, would that be trying to skirt the rules?” — Brad Smith, county district attorney

CNN

• “I know he’s had a bad upbringing, but … in this courtroom, we’ve seen a lot worse,” — Brad Smith, county district attorney

CNN

• “I don’t know that I have the stomach for a trial where Colt Gray is the victim,” — Brad Smith, county district attorney

CNN

District Attorney Smith indicated he has no intention of pursuing a trial that would require Colt Gray to testify against his mother, stating he lacks “the stomach” for such a proceeding. No further legal actions against Marcee Gray are currently planned.

CNN