Georgia school shooter’s dad gave teen AR-15 to ‘toughen him up’: Relative

'It's a recipe for disaster'

Published Sep 10, 2024  •  Last updated 0 minutes ago  •  2 minute read

Colin Gray, 54, the father of Apalachee High School shooting suspect Colt Gray, 14, enters the Barrow County courthouse for his first appearance, on Sept. 6, 2024, in Winder, Ga. Photo by Brynn Anderson-Pool /Getty Images

The father of a teenager charged in the mass shooting at a Georgia high school last week believed his son needed to “toughen” up — and the man’s answer was getting the boy an AR-15-style rifle.

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Colt Gray, 14, is accused of killing four people — two students and two teachers — and injuring nine other people in the rampage at Apalachee High School.

The gun he used was a Christmas gift from his father, Colin Gray, who was also arrested in the aftermath of the shooting.

“He would call Colt names to his face,” a relative of Colt’s mother, Marcee, told the New York Post.

“Names that no boy wants to hear: sissy, p***y, b***h … just names that were meant to break him down and emasculate him.”

The relative added: “Colin always thought that Colt was too gentle and tender. That’s why I believe he gave him the rifle.”

Colt is facing four counts of murder and will be charged as an adult, prosecutors said. The teen faces up to life in prison, if convicted.

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This booking image provided by the Barrow County, Ga., Sheriff’s Office shows Colt Gray, the 14-year-old suspect who has been charged as an adult with murder in the shootings Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga. Photo by Barrow County Sheriff's Office via AP

The victims of the shooting have been identified as Christian Angulo and Mason Schermerhorn, both 14; Cristina Irimie, 53, and 39-year-old Richard Aspinwall.

Colin, 54, has been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children in the second degree.

Colin could face up to 180 years in prison, if convicted of all charges.

Both father and son were questioned by authorities in May 2023 about online threats “to commit a school shooting.”

Colt denied making the threats at the time, and his father told authorities that his hunting guns were not kept loaded and insisted he emphasized safety when teaching the boy to shoot.

Colin did tell sheriff’s deputies that his son was often bullied and other kids would accuse the teen of being “gay,” the outlet reported.

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“He’s going through a lot,” Colin told an officer at the time, according to a police transcript. “He just wants us to have a simple life. It was very difficult for him to go to school and not get picked on.”

Relatives of the accused shooter, many of whom are gun owners themselves, were shocked that his dad gave him the rifle.

“When I heard it, I was like ‘what the f***’” the relative told the NY Post.

“You don’t give something like that to a kid. It’s a recipe for disaster.”

They added: “There was a lot of talk about ‘making a man’ out of Colt, just that whole mentality of toughening him up and making him stronger. That was Colin’s top priority, and you see where that got us.

“It’s just so sad.”

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