Connect with us

Georgia

Father of Georgia high school shooting suspect Colt Gray arrested

Published

on

Father of Georgia high school shooting suspect Colt Gray arrested


Two students and two teachers were killed and nine people injured in Wednesday’s high school shooting.

The father of the 14-year-old boy suspected of shooting dead four people and injuring nine more in a Georgia school has been arrested.

State officials said Colin Gray knowingly allowed his son Colt to have the weapon he used in Wednesday’s attack.

Gray, 54, was charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) said.

Advertisement

“These charges stem from Mr Gray knowingly allowing his son Colt to possess a weapon,” Chris Hosey, director of the GBI, told a news conference.

Colt Gray has been charged with four counts of murder and officials have said he will be tried as an adult. He is due to appear in court by video camera on Friday morning.

Two 14-year-old students and two teachers were killed in the attack on the Apalachee High School in Winder, northeast of Atlanta, reviving a long-running US debate on gun control.

Investigators say the younger Gray used an “AR platform style weapon”, or semiautomatic rifle, to carry out the shooting.

It remained unclear exactly how the teenager came into possession of the weapon.

Advertisement

Citing unnamed sources, CNN reported that the gun, which it described as an AR 15-style assault rifle, had been bought for the teenager by his father as a holiday gift.

“The investigation into the shooting at Apalachee HS is still active [and] ongoing,” the GBI said in a post on social media platform X.

Parental responsibility

Officials identified the two students killed as Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo. The two teachers were Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53. Nine people were injured, seven of them students. All are expected to make a full recovery.

Parental responsibility in mass shootings, particularly those carried out by minors, has come increasingly under the spotlight in recent months.

“How could you have an assault rifle, a weapon in a house, not locked up and knowing your kid knows where it is?” President Joe Biden told reporters on Thursday.

Advertisement

“You’ve got to hold parents accountable if they let their child have access to these guns.”

In April, the mother and father of a Michigan teen were sentenced to between 10 and 15 years in prison when a jury convicted them of manslaughter after their son shot and killed four classmates. It was believed to be the first time parents had been held legally responsible for their child’s actions in a school shooting.

Experts and gun safety advocates said the Michigan case was an important step in holding gun-owning parents more accountable for gun violence carried out by their children.

Studies by the US Department of Homeland Security have shown that about 75 percent of all school attackers got their weapons from home.

The United States has seen hundreds of shootings inside schools and colleges in the past two decades. The carnage has intensified the debate over gun laws and the US Constitution’s Second Amendment “to keep and bear arms”.

Advertisement



Source link

Georgia

Why Southern Living is spotlighting serene coastal escape in Georgia

Published

on

Why Southern Living is spotlighting serene coastal escape in Georgia


play

A quiet stretch of the Georgia coast is back in the national spotlight.

In a recent feature, Southern Living highlighted the Golden Isles as one of the South’s most serene escapes, praising the region’s undeveloped marshes, barrier islands and slower pace compared to other East Coast beach destinations.

Advertisement

Located roughly halfway between Savannah and Jacksonville, the Golden Isles include Brunswick, Sea Island, St. Simons Island, Jekyll Island and Little St. Simons Island.

Here’s what to know.

What makes Georgia’s Golden Isles different?

Unlike more densely developed beach towns in neighboring states, Georgia’s coastline is defined by tidal creeks, salt marshes and wide stretches of protected land.

“The coast of Georgia is quite different than the shores of North Carolina or South Carolina,” Southern Living wrote. “It’s wilder and quieter, and it’s much less populated with beach towns.”

While the islands offer modern resorts and vacation homes, much of the natural character remains intact.

Advertisement

One of the most photographed spots is Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island, known for its haunting remains of a maritime forest scattered along the shoreline.

Where are visitors staying?

The publication pointed to several well-known properties across the islands:

  • The Cloister at Sea Island
  • Jekyll Island Club Resort
  • St. Simons Island: The Grey Owl Inn and the St. Simons Lighthouse.

Little St. Simons Island, accessible only by boat, was highlighted for its all-inclusive lodge and thousands of acres of protected marshland and upland habitat.

What can you do in the Golden Isles?

Southern Living emphasized simple, immersive experiences:

Advertisement
  • Biking under live oaks
  • Kayaking through marsh creeks
  • Horseback riding along the beach
  • Watching sunsets over the water.

Public beaches like East Beach on St. Simons Island remain open to visitors, while golf courses on Jekyll Island and St. Simons offer year-round play.

The region’s history also plays a major role. Visitors can climb the St. Simons Lighthouse, explore historic districts in Brunswick or learn about Gullah Geechee heritage through local organizations.

For more information, visit southernliving.com/georgias-golden-isles-11906085.

Vanessa Countryman is the Trending Topics Reporter for the Deep South Connect Team Georgia. Email her at Vcountryman@gannett.com.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Georgia

Gov. Kemp signs amended FY 2026 budget, delivering $2B in Georgia tax relief

Published

on

Gov. Kemp signs amended FY 2026 budget, delivering B in Georgia tax relief


Georgia Governor Brian P. Kemp on Tuesday signed HB 973, the amended Fiscal Year 2026 budget.

The amended budget includes $2 billion in income and property tax relief, alongside investments in education, public safety, mental health, transportation and rural development.

Lt. Gov. Burt Jones praised Gov. Kemp, saying the budget…

“Makes critical investments in middle-class families, mental health services, healthcare workforce development, transportation and Georgia’s veterans community.”

Key allocations in the amended budget include:

Advertisement
  • Education and Workforce Development: $325 million to endow the DREAMS Scholarship, a new needs-based scholarship program; $6 million for a Career Navigator tool; and funding for new and expanded programs at University System of Georgia and Technical College System of Georgia institutions.
  • Public Safety: $150 million for Department of Corrections bed space, $9.7 million for additional corrections officers, $15 million for a new K-9 training facility, and $50 million to help communities address homelessness, including among veterans.
  • Mental Health: $409 million to design and construct a new Georgia Regional Hospital to expand mental health bed capacity.
  • Transportation: More than $1.6 billion to extend and expand I-75 express lanes in Henry County; $185 million for SR 316 interchange conversions; $100 million for rural bridge rehabilitation and replacement; and $250 million for local maintenance and improvement grants.
  • Rural Georgia: $15 million for rural site development grants; $35 million for a new natural gas infrastructure program; and $8.9 million for the Georgia Forestry Innovation Initiative.

Governor Kemp says the state’s conservative budgeting approach has allowed Georgia to provide tax relief while making “generational investments.”



Source link

Continue Reading

Georgia

Middle Georgia DSA condemns U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, calls escalation ‘illegal’

Published

on

Middle Georgia DSA condemns U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, calls escalation ‘illegal’


Middle Georgia Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) has issued a statement regarding the U.S. and Israel’s joint strikes on Iran over the weekend.

According to other WGXA articles, based on reports as of early March 2026, the United States and Israel have launched major, coordinated military operations against Iran, labeled in reports as “Operation Epic Fury” and “Operation Midnight Hammer”. This follows months of failed nuclear negotiations and escalating regional tensions.

RELATED | Hegseth insists US-Israel strikes on Iran are ‘not Iraq, not endless’

WGXA asked Middle Georgia DSA, the largest activist organization in Middle Georgia, for their opinions on the strikes, and they responded with this:

Advertisement

The strikes on Iran, carried out by the United States and Israel, mark a catastrophic escalation in an illegal act of aggression. The Iranian people do not deserve to live in fear of American bombs and of the instability of regime change. Americans do not want our tax dollars and the lives of our people to be wasted on opening up a new war in the Middle East, or on bombing girls’ elementary schools. We want relief from the affordability crisis. We want peace. Middle Georgia DSA unequivocally condemns these attacks and any politicians who cannot do the same. We do not want this, we do not deserve this.

DSA added that they are not currently planning any protests at this time, and that they “remain focused on improving the conditions of people who live within our communities directly, and do not feel a protest is the best strategy to deliver on that.”

Middle Georgia DSA condemns U.S.-Israel strikes on Iran, calls escalation ‘illegal’, March 2, 2026 (Image is meant to say 2026 instead of 2025, Courtesy of GCSU Mutual Aid)

However, GCSU Mutual Aid, a grassroots, community-led initiative focused on collective care and resource sharing within the Milledgeville and broader Middle Georgia area. While not an official department of Georgia College & State University (GCSU), it frequently operates in coordination with student-led groups and local residents to address gaps in traditional social safety nets.

RELATED | GCSU encourages peaceful expression ahead of national ICE walkout

GCSU Mutual Aid is planning a protest for Wednesday, where they will be “Marching for Democracy” in retaliation to recent events in the U.S.

Advertisement
Comment with Bubbles

BE THE FIRST TO COMMENT

Stick with WGXA as we keep you ready for what’s next.



Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Trending