WINDER, Georgia — The father of a Georgia teenager who killed four people in a 2024 high school shooting was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Thursday after being convicted of second-degree murder and other charges in a landmark case involving parental responsibility for a child's mass shooting.
Colin Gray was convicted in March of multiple charges stemming from the Sept. 4, 2024, shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, in which his son, Colt Gray, killed two students and two teachers. Prosecutors said Colin Gray had provided his son with the rifle used in the attack despite warning signs about the teenager's behavior.
The younger Gray, now 16, was sentenced earlier this week to life in prison without parole after pleading guilty to 55 charges related to the shooting, according to court records and reporting by the Associated Press.
Prosecutors had sought a substantially longer sentence for Colin Gray, while his defense argued that he did not know his son intended to carry out the attack. Judge Nicholas Primm said the father's crimes were connected to his son's actions but distinguished between the two men's conduct, according to court proceedings reported by Reuters.
The case is among the rare U.S. prosecutions in which a parent has been held criminally responsible in connection with a mass shooting committed by a child.
Colin Gray's 15-year sentence follows his conviction on charges including second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter. The case is now at the sentencing stage, with the latest court ruling concluding the proceedings against him.
