A 14-year-old opened fire at a Barrow County high school Wednesday morning, killing two students and two teachers and injuring nine others, according to investigators.
The shooting at Apalachee High School shocked not only the local community nestled between Atlanta and Athens, but soon made national headlines throughout the day, with federal and state law enforcement agencies assisting with the investigation.
Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith called the shooting “pure evil.”
“My heart hurts for these kids. My heart hurts for our community,” Smith said. “But I want to make it very clear that hate will not prevail in this county. I want that to be very clearly known. Love will prevail over what happened today. I assure you of that.”
By late Wednesday, more details were released about the shooting, including the names of the victims and the teenager suspected of killing them.
Colt Gray, 14, an Apalachee student, was charged with murder and was expected to be held at a regional youth detention center, Smith said. Gray was being charged as an adult, and investigators released details about a previous investigation involving the teen.
He is accused of killing four people Wednesday, and was previously investigated for threats about a shooting last year, the FBI Atlanta office said. Gray was not charged after the 2023 investigation.
Credit: Courtesy photos
Credit: Courtesy photos
Gray is accused of using an AR-platform-style weapon Wednesday, but no details were available about how or why the teenager allegedly fired inside the school.
Several law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and GBI, responded around 10:20 a.m. to the school, which was placed on lockdown following reports of an active shooting, the Barrow sheriff’s office said.
At 10:23 a.m., 11th grader Henry van der Walt texted his mother: “I think there’s a school shooting.”
Minutes later, Becky van der Walt got another message.
“I love you,” Henry wrote.
Credit: Courtesy: van der Walt family
Credit: Courtesy: van der Walt family
The text exchange was likely repeated hundreds of times during several chaotic hours for both students and parents. Students were led from the school outside, where parents rushed to find them.
Late Wednesday, the names of those killed were released. GBI Director Chris Hosey said both students killed were 14 years old. They were identified as Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo. One of the teachers killed was identified as assistant football coach Richard “Ricky” Aspinwall. The other was Cristina Irimie, a math teacher according to the school’s website.
Gov. Brian Kemp, who earlier Wednesday flew to Nevada where he was scheduled to speak at the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas, quickly flew back to Georgia after news of the shooting. He pledged all available state resources to help investigators and appeared alongside the Barrow sheriff and GBI leader late Wednesday.
“This is everybody’s worst nightmare,” Kemp said.
A student resource officer stopped the alleged shooter, who was cooperating with investigators, officials said. That officer and other first responders were being hailed as heroes who helped prevent the tragedy from being worse.
Late Wednesday, one victim remained at Grady Memorial Hospital and another at Northeast Georgia Medical Center Gainesville, hospital officials said. Others had been released from regional hospitals and all of those injured were expected to survive, Smith said.
The school district will be closed for the remainder of the week, with grief counselors available for those in need. A vigil was held Wednesday night at a nearby park.
Apalachee High had an enrollment of just over 1,900 students as of March, according to the Georgia Department of Education. The department said it was also monitoring the situation.
“I am devastated by the news of the tragic shooting at Apalachee High School today,” Richard Woods, state school superintendent, said in a statement. “My heart and prayers are with the families and loved ones of those affected and the entire Barrow County community. This is an unimaginable loss for Barrow and for our entire educational community across the state.”
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens also issued a statement after the shooting.
“My prayers are with the high school students, staff and families affected by the senseless act of violence in Winder, Georgia,” he said. “I have been in contact with Chief (Darin) Schierbaum, and the Atlanta Police Department has been working with the Atlanta Public Schools Police Department to bolster patrols around our schools for the rest of the day out of an abundance of caution.
“APD has also been on standby in case law enforcement agencies need assistance with this incident. May God comfort the victims and their loved ones in the difficult days ahead.”
Apalachee sophomore Alexsandra Romero said she was in her second-period class when another student barged in yelling for everyone to get down.
“I wasn’t texting my family at first, because I thought it was just a drill,” Romero said.
Since the school had prepared for this scenario, Romero said she and her classmates knew what to do.
“I can just remember my hands were shaking,” Romero said. “I felt bad because everybody was crying, everybody was trying to find their siblings.”
Romero caught glimpses of blood and guns lying on the ground as she was escorted from the building.
“I can still picture everything, like the blood, the shouting and everything,” Romero said.
Wednesday night, investigators said the investigation was still very active.
“I don’t know why it happened,” Smith said. “I may not ever know. We may not ever know. But I ask that you and our community lift up our schools, lift up our public safety and that again we do not let this hateful event prevail.”
— Staff writers Lexi Baker, Helena Oliviero, Rosana Hughes, David Aaron and Henri Hollis contributed to this article.
