Here's What We Know About School Shooting Suspect Colt Gray's Parents
Colt Gray's mother has an arrest record that goes back 17 years.
Published Sept. 6 2024, 2:36 p.m. ET
Conversations about parental responsibility have been reignited in light of the September 2024 shooting at a Georgia high school. Specifically, people are looking at the case of Ethan Crumbley, the Oxford High School shooter. In April 2024, his parents were sentenced to 10 years in prison after being convicted of involuntary manslaughter. He received a life sentence. History is already starting to repeat itself a few months later.
Colt Gray is the 14-year-old charged with killing four people at Apalachee High School in Winder, Ga. He was arrested minutes after the shooting. His father, Colin Gray, was taken into custody soon after. The younger Gray has been charged with four counts of felony murder while his father is looking at, "two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter, and eight counts of cruelty to children," per CNN. Here's what we know about both of Colt Gray's parents.
Colt Gray's parents certainly struggled. His mother had a history of violence.
According to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Marcee Gray's criminal record started in the early 2000s and stretches across four counties. The 43-year-old mother of two has been accused of "domestic violence, drug possession, property damage, and traffic violations," as well as " civil fraud claims related to a vehicle purchase." She was released from jail on bond in April 2024, for an incident dating back to December 2023.
Documents obtained by the outlet state that Marcee has yet to be indicted for a different set of charges. In November 2023, she allegedly attacked a 73-year-old woman in her home, which was only a couple of miles from where the Gray family lives. During the assault, Marcee reportedly threw this woman against a wall, then taped her to a chair. She was subsequently "charged with aggravated battery of a 73-year-old woman, theft, false imprisonment, criminal trespass and failure to appear."
Colt Gray's father is in custody after his arrest.
Colin Gray, age 54, was taken into custody by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), the day after the shooting, reported CBS News. His charges stem from the fact that he knowingly allowed his son to possess a weapon, said GBI Director Chris Hosey. If convicted on all counts, Colin faces up to 180 years in prison.
In May 2023, both Colin and his son were questioned by the Federal Bureau of Investigation after they received a tip about online threats being made by the younger Gray. Evidently, he had referenced a school shooting in various posts made on Discord but told investigators he had been hacked. In his report, a deputy wrote that the then-13-year-old "assured me [him] never made any threats to shoot up any school." They did not have enough evidence to arrest the teen.
An attorney for Colin Gray did not request bond. Both Colin Gray and his son are planning on obtaining new counsel. Both will remain in custody until their preliminary hearings on Dec. 4, 2024. Barrow County District Attorney Brad Smith said both could face additional charges, per NBC News.