Colt Gray, who was 14 when he carried out the September 2024 shooting at Apalachee High School, has pleaded guilty to malice murder and related charges. The non-negotiated plea means the case will not go to trial; Gray acknowledged the possibility of life in prison without parole and said he has mental health issues. Victims' families — including the mother of a slain 14-year-old and the widow of a teacher — urged the judge to impose life without parole. The shooter's father was previously convicted for supplying the weapon and is due to be sentenced next week.
Apalachee High Shooter Pleads Guilty — Victims' Families Urge Life Without Parole
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Colt Gray, now 16, has pleaded guilty in the September 2024 shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia that killed two students and two teachers. Gray — who was 14 at the time of the attack — entered a non-negotiated guilty plea and is charged as an adult with malice murder, weapons violations and cruelty to children. Because the plea was non-negotiated, there will be no jury trial.
Prosecutors previously secured the conviction of Gray's father, Colin Gray, who was found guilty in March of murder for giving his son the firearm used in the shooting as a Christmas present; he is scheduled to be sentenced next week.
The victims were identified as student Mason (14), student Christian Angulo (14), and teachers Richard Aspinwall (39) and Cristina Irimie (53). During an emotional court session, family members and survivors described the lasting damage.
“I do not forgive, Mr. Gray,” said Breanna Schermerhorn, mother of Mason, describing the daily reality of her son’s loss and the milestones he will never reach.
Addressing Judge Nicholas Primm, Colt Gray acknowledged that his plea waives his rights to a jury trial and many appeals and that he faces the possibility of life in prison without parole. He also told the court he has struggled with mental health issues and is taking medication.
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Families urged the judge to impose the harshest punishment available. Shayna Aspinwall, the widow of teacher Richard Aspinwall, said the future she planned with her husband no longer exists and pleaded that the shooter not be given an opportunity for parole. Ismael Angulo, brother of Christian, told the court the shooting had “shattered thousands of lives in a single instant.”
Several teenage survivors read statements describing long-term trauma. Taylor Jones, who was shot and injured, said she developed severe anxiety after the attack and struggled to do many things that a normal 14-year-old should be able to do.
The case has renewed public debate about gun safety and parental responsibility. Prosecutors argued at the father’s trial that Colin Gray was “the one person who could have prevented” the shooting and that he knew his son was “a bomb just waiting to go off” when he gave him the weapon.
With the teen's guilty plea, criminal proceedings for Colt Gray will proceed directly to sentencing rather than trial. The father's upcoming sentencing will conclude the related criminal prosecutions tied to the attack.
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