Investigators said a 14-year-old
opened fire at a high school in Barrow County on Wednesday morning, killing two
students and two teachers and injuring nine others.
In addition to shocking the little town of Apalachee, which is tucked between
Atlanta and Athens, the shooting at the high school quickly gained national
attention throughout the day, with federal and state law enforcement
authorities cooperating with the investigation.
Jud Smith, the Barrow County sheriff, described the shooting as "pure
evil."
"I feel terrible for these children. Smith remarked,
"My heart aches for our community. However, I want to be quite clear that
this county will not be the home of hatred. That should be very evident, I
hope. Love will triumph over the events of today. You can count on it, I
promise.
The names of the deceased and the adolescent who is accused of killing them
were among the additional information about the incident that was made public
by late Wednesday.
According to Smith, 14-year-old Apalachee student Colt Gray
was charged with murder and was likely to be detained at a juvenile detention
facility. Gray was being charged as an adult, and the specifics of an earlier
probe into the teen were made public by the authorities.
According to the FBI Atlanta branch, he was previously looked into for threats
related to a shooting that occurred last year. He is accused of killing four
people on Wednesday. Gray was not prosecuted following the probe in 2023.
Gray is charged with using a weapon akin to one seen on an AR platform on
Wednesday, although it was unclear how or why the adolescent allegedly
discharged his weapon inside the school.
Following reports of an active shooting, the school was
placed on lockdown. Around 10:20 a.m., a number of law enforcement agencies,
including the FBI and GBI, rushed to the scene, according to the Barrow
sheriff's office.
Henry van der Walt, an 11th grader, texted his mother at 10:23 a.m. saying,
"I think there's a school shooting." Becky van der Walt received
another message a little while later.
Parents and children alike probably read the text exchange hundreds of times
during those hectic hours. Parents hurried to locate their children after they
were led outside the school.
The identities of the deceased were made public late on Wednesday. Both of the dead pupils, according to GBI Director Chris Hosey, were 14 years old. Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo were named as them. Richard "Ricky" Aspinwall, the assistant football coach, was one of the teachers that perished. The other, according to the school website, was Christina Irimie, a math instructor.
Following hearing of the incident, Gov. Brian Kemp, who had been to Nevada earlier on Wednesday to speak at the Republican Jewish Coalition in Las Vegas, returned to Georgia swiftly. He showed up late on Wednesday with the Barrow sheriff and the head of the GBI, promising to provide all state resources to the investigators.
Kemp remarked, "This is everyone's worst
nightmare."
The alleged shooter was stopped by a student resource officer and was assisting
the authorities, according to reports. The policeman and additional emergency
personnel were being praised as heroes for their role in averting a more
catastrophic incident.
According to hospital officials, as of late Wednesday, one person was still in
Grady Memorial Hospital and another at Northeast Georgia Medical Center
Gainesville. According to Smith, more people had been discharged from local
hospitals and all of the injured people were anticipated to live.
For the rest of the week, the school district will be
closed, and individuals in need can speak with grief counselors. At a
neighboring park on Wednesday night, there was a vigil.
The Georgia Department of Education reports that as of March, Apalachee High
has little over 1,900 pupils enrolled. The department declared that it was
keeping an eye on things.
The horrible shooting at Apalachee High School today has left me grieved,
according to a statement from state superintendent of schools Richard Woods.
"My thoughts and prayers are with the impacted individuals' families, as
well as the people of Barrow County as a whole. For Barrow and the entire
state's educational community, this is an unfathomable loss.
Following the shooting, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens also
released a statement.
"The high school students, faculty, and families impacted by the senseless
act of violence in Winder, Georgia are in my prayers," he remarked.
"The Atlanta Police Department has been collaborating with the Atlanta
Public Schools Police Department to increase patrols around our schools for the
remainder of the day out of an abundance of caution. I have been in contact
with Chief (Darin) Schierbaum."In case law enforcement authorities require
assistance with this situation, APD has also been prepared. May God grant
solace to the bereaved and their loved ones during these trying times.
Alexandra Romero, a sophomore at Apalachee, reported that
she was in her second period class when a different student stormed in and
started screaming at the class to get down.
Romero remarked, "At first, I wasn't texting my family because I thought
it was just a drill."
Romero claimed that she and her classmates understood what to do because the
school had been prepared for this kind of situation.
Romero remarked, "I just remember my hands were shaking." "I
felt horrible because everyone was crying and looking for their siblings."
As Romero was led out of the building, she saw snippets of
blood and weapons scattered around the floor.
Romero remarked, "I can still picture everything, like the blood, the
shouting, and everything."
Investigators claimed that the inquiry remained quite active as of Wednesday
night.
Smith remarked, "I don't know why it happened." "I might never
find out. We might never find out. However, I kindly urge that you and our
neighborhood improve public safety, our schools, and once more, we refuse to
allow this ugly incident to succeed.
0 Comments