Barrow County, Georgia, ruled Thursday that Colin Gray, who was charged with 29 crimes allegedly shooting his son Colt at Appalachie High School last year, faced another county ju-gage.
During the afternoon hearing, the state and Gray lawyers agreed that the trial should be moved, but for a variety of reasons. According to Fox 5 Atlanta.
The defense said the trial must be moved to protect the integrity of the trial.
Barrow County Courthouse on Friday, September 6, 2024 in Winder, Georgia. (Ben Hendren of Fox News Digital)
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“All we need to do is find a place where we can get a fair and fair ju judge,” said Jimmy Berry, Gray’s lawyer. “I don’t think we’ll find it anywhere in this epicenter.”
The state said it would not want to further impact the well-being of the Barrow County community.
“The reason the state agrees to change venues from Burrow County is because all of Burrow County were victims in this case,” District Attorney Brad Smith said.
Finally, Barrow County Superior Court Judge Nicholas Primum agreed that the venue was guaranteed to be changed. He noted that the trial occurs entirely outside the county, or together with ju apprentices who do not live there within the county.
Colin Gray, 54, the father of Appalachie High School shooter Colt Gray, will enter Barrow County Courthouse on September 6, 2024 to make his first appearance in Winder, Georgia. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
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“We need to understand whether we export the trial or import the jury,” he said.
Gray’s charges include second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter and reckless conduct.
Colt Gray, 14, is said to have fired at Appalachie High School on September 4th, killing four people and injuring nine people. Of the four victims killed, two were teachers and two were students.
Gray has been accused of using a semi-automatic rifle given to him by his father.
Colt Gray was arrested on September 5, 2024 in Barrow County, Georgia for four counts of malicious murders, four counts of felony murders, and abuse of assault and child abuse. (Burrow County Sheriff’s Office)
Young Gray has been charged with 55 criminal offences, including four counts of felony murder in a shooting.
The accused was on the law enforcement radar in 2023.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Office had visited Grey multiple times as a person of interest leading up to the shooting after reporting an online threat in May 2023 that he was attending a middle school.
Police investigated the threat and spoke to both Collin and Colt at their home on May 21, 2023.
Colin Gray said the authorities’ weapons were accessible at his home, but they were not loaded. (Jackson County Sheriff’s Office)
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He was also on the FBI radar in 2023 when the station received anonymous hints on online threats.
The father and son were charged on October 17th. Both pleaded not guilty.
Fox News Digital reached out to Berry and Smith.
Stepheny Price from Fox News contributed to this report.
