Shooting At Apalachee High

Simon Thanh Vuong • November 4, 2024

Whether it be dismissing students for the day or starting the very next class, the familiar chime of school bells has brought structure to American schools for decades. However, this emblematic sound is unfortunately being rivaled by something much more sinister – the ring of gunshots. On Sept. 4, students and staff of Apalachee High School located in Winder, Georgia, sought shelter within their classrooms as 14-year-old student Colt Gray opened fire on his teachers and classmates (Reuters).

Prior to the attack, Gray had been granted permission to leave class to speak with someone in the front office. Tragically, this window of time provided him with the perfect opportunity to retrieve his rifle from his backpack hidden in the restroom. 35 minutes later, he opened fire on the school; this prompted a complete lockdown lasting six minutes in which Gray could be heard firing 10 to 15 consecutive gunshots (AP News).

In the aftermath, the 14-year-old killed two fellow students and two teachers, while leaving nine others injured. This equates to a charge of at least four counts of felony murder. Gray will be tried as an adult despite his young age — if convicted, the maximum sentence is life in prison without parole. His father, Colin Gray, has been found to be complicit in the case by providing his child with the firearm, and thus is facing two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter and eight counts of cruelty to children. If convicted, he will be subjected to 180 years in prison (Reuters). Not only does this mark the most severe charges to ever be filed against the parent of a school shooter, but also the second time in the United States a parent has been charged for a mass shooting carried out by a minor. The shooting carried out at Oxford High School by Ethan Crumbley was the very first instance and his parents were charged for manslaughter in direct connection with the case (NBC News).

Apalachee High School is merely one of 385 mass shootings carried out in the U.S. during 2024 alone, according to the Gun Violence Archive. In comparison to one of the very first school shootings to receive mass media coverage in America, the Columbine school shooting of 1999, the public’s general reaction to these tragedies has shifted dramatically (CBS News). Even though advancements in technology have made information now more accurate and accessible, the spike in school shootings has fostered desensitization within the general public. While the Apalachee shooting seems to be another expected chapter of American life, reactions to the Columbine school shooting in 1999 were characterized with fear and disbelief from not only students, but teachers, parents and lawmakers. Junior Jonathan Kwon reflects on this notion as he describes his increased tolerance for news of another high school shooting.

“Now that there are more school shootings, people don’t really have the ability to react,” Kwon said. “[The public] has really gotten used to [the news of school shooting] and it doesn’t get [much] attention anymore.”

News of another school shooting rekindles the same ardent political debates regarding the Second Amendment, which protects the right of people to bear arms. In response to the dire situation, President Joe Biden has publicly urged Republican politicians to cooperate with Democrats in the hopes of passing “common-sense gun safety legislation,” in reference to policies aimed to reduce the prevalence of mass shootings (Reuters). For instance, these could be placing limits on ammunition magazine size, which is reflected in the proposed Keep Americans Safe Act, or employing background checks before firearms could be purchased, a part of the proposed Bipartisan Background C. On the other hand, Jon Burns, the Republican House Speaker for the state of Georgia, has shifted the focus toward preventative measures, such as the implementation of artificial intelligence technology in conjunction with camera systems to enhance security within schools. Additionally, he places a heavy emphasis on adequate mental health support, such as the expansion of mental healthcare for students. This initiative aligns with the state’s Apex Program, which provided school-based behavioral health services to 31% of all students in Georgia from 2022-23 (PBS News). School Resource Officer David Rozas emphasizes the impact of societal pressures on students, as Gray’s situation demonstrates.

“Apparently, [Colt Gray] was bullied, and there are a lot of [external] factors [that affected him],” Rozas said. “[For example], his mom was a drug addict, so [he] had a lot of [mental health] issues. Law enforcement cannot fix the problems; [therefore], it is [a societal] problem. [School shootings] are going to continue to be prevalent because of society’s pressure on these kids.”

Gray’s struggles were not limited to the bullying he faced in school, as he also endured his parents’ bitter divorce and his mother’s criminal background, which includes drug possession (CNN). Needless to say, this heavily strained his development. Additionally, Colin Gray had fostered his son’s interest in firearms as a means to “get him away from the video games,” so Colt Gray always had access to assault rifles despite his young age (Spectrum News). His interest in school shootings, however, could be traced back to 2023, when investigators of the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department found his school-shooting threats on the online messaging platform, Discord. With that being said, Colt and Colin Gray denied ownership of the account when questioned by police, thus the allegation “cannot be substantiated” (The Washington Post).

Circumstantial evidence limits the police’s abilities to detain a suspect before they carry out a shooting — one reason cited for why 400 school shootings have taken place since the Columbine school shooting of 1999 (The Washington Post). While the future of gun ownership remains an undetermined subject within political legislation, the mental and physical well-being of American children remains a shared concern by all. Senior Nicolas Stavrakis shares his insight on the matter.

“There should not need to be any solutions for school shootings because there should not be any [shootings] to begin with, but sadly that is not the world which we live [in],” Stavrakis said. “[Therefore, it is important that] proper access to mental healthcare [is] offered and promoted more than it already is, because massacres such as [the Apalachee High School Shooting] could have been avoided if the shooters were not mentally distressed. [Additionally], a shift in our culture from the promotion of guns to one that discourages the use of violence and force is imperative.”