The suspect, identified as 14-year-old student Colt Gray, has been apprehended and is currently in custody.
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), the victims included two students and two teachers, although their identities have not been disclosed at this time.The motive behind the attack remains unclear, and officials have not confirmed any specific targets. The GBI stated, “An additional nine were taken to various hospitals with injuries. The suspect is in custody and alive. Reports that the suspect has been ‘neutralized’ are inaccurate.”
This shooting is yet another tragic incident in the ongoing gun violence crisis in America, with nearly 400 mass shootings reported in the country so far this year.
Eyewitness recounts horrifying shooting
Students who witnessed the attack shared harrowing accounts of the events that unfolded. Lyela Sayarath, a classmate of the alleged attacker, told CNN that the suspect left their algebra class early in the lesson and returned with a gun, which another student noticed and refused to let him in. The attacker then reportedly went to the neighboring classroom and began shooting.
Alexsandra Romero, a second-year student, described the panic and fear that ensued when someone barged into her class, warning students to take cover. “I can just remember my hands were shaking,” Romero told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I felt bad because everybody was crying, everybody was trying to find their siblings. I can still picture everything, like the blood, the shouting.”
Julie Sandoval, another student, recounted hiding in a corner with classmates until police arrived, praying and trying to stay calm while attempting to text her friends and parents. Marques Coleman, a 14-year-old student, described seeing the attacker holding a “big gun” before the shooting started and the chaos that followed as his teacher tried to barricade the door with desks.
How the shooting unfolded
Authorities first received reports of the shooting at the high school, which serves approximately 1,900 students, around 10:20 am local time. Local sheriff Jud Smith described the attack as “pure evil.” “Within minutes law enforcement was on scene, as well as two school resource officers assigned to the school who immediately encountered the subject,” the sheriff said in a news conference.
Law enforcement responded quickly, with two school resource officers already on campus immediately confronting the suspect. Sheriff Smith recounted that the suspect “gave up, got on the ground,” and was taken into custody without further incident.
The suspect, Colt Gray, had been on the FBI’s radar as early as May 2023, following anonymous tips about online threats to commit a school shooting. FBI agents interviewed Gray and his father at that time, though no further action was taken, as there was no probable cause for an arrest.
According to the FBI, Gray’s father acknowledged having hunting guns at home but said that his son did not have unsupervised access to them. Gray, who was 13 at the time of the FBI interview, denied making the online threats, and the agency alerted local schools to monitor him.
Among the victims was 14-year-old Mason Schermerhorn, who had autism, according to local reports. The Georgia school shooting incident adds to the growing list of mass shootings in the United States, with nearly 400 such incidents reported this year alone.
Leaders condemn shooting incident
President Joe Biden expressed sorrow and frustration over the tragedy stating, “Jill and I are mourning the deaths of those whose lives were cut short due to more senseless gun violence and thinking of all of the survivors whose lives are forever changed,” Biden said in a statement. He called for bipartisan action, urging Republicans to work with Democrats on “common-sense gun safety legislation.”
Vice president Kamala Harris, who is also the Democratic nominee for president, described the incident as a “senseless tragedy.” During a campaign event in New Hampshire, she declared, “We’ve gotta stop it. We have to end this epidemic of gun violence.”
Former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee, took to social media to address the tragedy. “Our hearts are with the victims and loved ones of those affected by the tragic event in Winder, GA,” he wrote. “These cherished children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster.”
Georgia governor Brian Kemp said that the focus should be on the investigation rather than politics. “Today is not the day for politics or policy. Today is the day for an investigation, to mourn these precious Georgians that we have lost,” he said.