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Relatives of the suspected Georgia school shooter Colt Gray have questioned why their warnings appeared to go unheeded ahead of the deadly attack which left four dead.
Gray, 14, is accused of killing two fellow students, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14, and high-school teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53.
The 14-year-old has been charged as an adult with four counts of felony murder. His father, Colin Gray, has also been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder, and eight counts of cruelty to children, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Law enforcement said that Colin Gray gave the AR15-style firearm to his son as a Christmas gift last year, months after the FBI interviewed the father and son over threats he allegedly made online about school shootings.
The suspected shooter’s mother, Marcee Gray, raised the alarm about her son’s mental health on the day of the attack, and his grandmother did the same almost a week before.
Marcee Gray said that she made a ten-minute phone call to Apalachee High School on the morning of the attack. Her call was made approximately half an hour before the first gunshots, according to The Washington Post.
Gray warned a counselor about an “extreme emergency” involving her 14-year-old son, according to text messages and an interview with a relative, obtained by The Post.
The suspected shooter’s aunt, Annie Brown, said that her nephew had been talking about school shootings on the morning of the attack, according to The Post.
The Independent has contacted the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Apalachee High School for comment.
Brown also told The Post that her nephew had pleaded for months for mental health support, and that the “adults around him failed him.”
The suspected gunman’s maternal grandmother, Deborah Polhamus, visited Apalachee High in Winder, Georgia, a day before the massacre to discuss her grandson’s behavioral issues, according to CBS News.
Polhamus raised the alarm last week, according to The Post, over her 14-year-old grandson’s “homicidal and suicidal thoughts”. He was scheduled to visit a therapist but it is unknown whether he did, the report said.
According to CBS, Charlie Polhamus, the gunman’s grandfather said: “My wife had gone up there… the day before and met with the teachers to get him some, they were having some problems with him not going to school, and this kind of thing.
“So, my wife went up there. This was the day before all this stuff happened.”
Charlie Polhamus also called for Colin Gray to receive the “death penalty” in an interview with the New York Post.
Polhamus, 81, told The NY Post: "Colt has to pay for what he did, but I’m telling you, he was driven, no question in my mind... he was driven by his father to do what he did. That’s as plain as I can put it, and I know I’m right.
"[Colin Gray] got what he deserved, too... he needs the death penalty."
The suspected shooter’s family and home life in the months leading up to the shooting were revealed to be turbulent.
His parents went through an acrimonious divorce, and the family had been evicted from their home, according to records obtained by The Post.
Gray’s mother also pleaded guilty to a charge of family violence in December, according to court records requested by The Post, and was living apart from her ex-husband and son.
Vigils have been held outside the Apalachee High School to commemorate the four victims.
Note: If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988, or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
