WINDER, Ga. (Court TV) — A teenager charged with killing four people at his Georgia high school will stand trial in Columbia County, two hours away from the scene of the crime.
Colt Gray appears in court. (Court TV)
Colt Gray was 14 when he allegedly opened fire at Apalachee High School on Sept. 4, 2024, killing teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irmie, 53, alongside 14-year-old students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo.
Judge Nicholas Primm had previously granted the defense’s request to move the trial out of Barrow County — a motion that was unopposed by the prosecution. On Wednesday, Primm issued an order announcing that the trial would move to Columbia County, where the circuit chief judge had approved hosting it.
Primm will continue to preside over the trial, which will still be prosecuted by the Barrow County District Attorney’s Office. The jury will be selected from Columbia County, and court security, bailiffs and other personnel will be staffed from Columbia County as well. Barrow County will reimburse the county for its services.
The jury will not be sequestered for the trial, which is currently slated to span three weeks.
Colt Gray’s father, Colin Gray, was convicted of 29 charges — including two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of involuntary manslaughter — for his role in the high school shooting. Prosecutors successfully argued that Colin Gray carried some measure of responsibility because he had gifted his son the weapon used in the shooting and had actively ignored what investigators called a “shrine” to Nikolas Cruz in the teen’s bedroom. Cruz was convicted of killing 17 people in 2018 in a school shooting in Parkland, Florida.
Colt Gray faces a total of 55 counts, including four counts of murder and 25 counts of aggravated assault.
While Colin Gray’s trial was held in Barrow County, his jury panel was selected from neighboring Hall County. Colin Gray is scheduled to be sentenced during a two-day hearing beginning on July 28.
While Colt Gray’s trial is moving, Primm specified that all pretrial hearings will continue to be held in Barrow County.
