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

Colt Gray pleads guilty to killing two students and two teachers in 2024 attack, which upped scrutiny of parental role.A 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.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3‘Endless grief’: Turkiye mourns victims of second school shooting in a weeklist 2 of 3Mass shootings are becoming normal in USlist 3 of 3After San Diego shooting, Muslim Americans aim to turn grief into actionend of listThe 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.