BARROW COUNTY, Ga. — Almost 18 months after a deadly shooting at a Georgia high school, the suspected shooter’s father has been convicted of murder.
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith says Colin Gray’s conviction is a step towards justice and closure, but they’re not there yet.
“That was a roller coaster, really surreal,” he told Channel 2’s Michael Doudna.
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On Tuesday, a jury found Colin Gray guilty of 27 crimes, including two counts of second-degree murder.
The father was charged because he gave his son, Colt Gray, the gun used during the deadly attack and did not limit his access to it.
“It was multiple warnings over a lengthy period of time, and as we said, you just had to do one thing: take that rifle away,” Barrow County District Attorney Brad Smith said during the trial.
The sheriff says the verdict is the result of thousands of hours of work. Smith says the District Attorney’s work before and during the trial were essential to getting a conviction.
“We owe it to those four victims, and we owe it to those four victims’ families, we owe it to that school, we owe it to our community to get it right,” he said.
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But Colt Gray, the shooter accused of killing Ricky Aspinwall, Cristina Irimie, Christian Angulo and Mason Schermerhorn, has not stood trial.
Sheriff Smith says the community will not have justice and closure until that happens.
“The job’s not done, and we’re not going to stop,” he said.
Former DeKalb County District Attorney Robert James told Channel 2 Action News that he expects the verdict to appeal.
This marks the first time in Georgia, and only the second time nationwide, that a parent was held responsible for not preventing the actions of their child.
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