School resource officer Chase Boyd recounted his confrontation with Colt Gray, the 14-year-old suspected of carrying out a mass shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia in an interview published on Sunday.
The shooting, which occurred on September 4, 2024, left two students and two teachers dead with seven other victims injured.
During an interview at River Hills Church, Boyd explained how he and another officer named Brandon King had trouble seeing the shooter in a smoke-filled hallway after entering the building. “We can't shoot because we don't know if it's a teacher, a student, the shooter. We have no idea what's at the end of that hall,” Boyd said.
The officer said Colt was about 72 yards away from them when they entered the hallway.
We could not see him except for a black silhouette in smoke and dust. From all the concussion of the rounds that he fired and the gun smoke and everything else, you couldn't see at that distance down there. And by extension, he couldn't see us.
The officers entered the facility after hearing gunshots. Boyd said he and King “both kind of looked at each other for that split second” before going to confront the shooter.
Boyd explained that Gray “lived because we couldn’t see, and by the time we got to him, he was no longer a threat.”
Because he wasn't a threat, we can't just execute him. That's not our job. I would be in jail right now had we done something like that.
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The officer recalled handcuffing the suspected shooter and finding more ammunition, indicating that he wished to murder more victims at the school. "I took several full magazines of ammunition out of his pockets," he said. "He wasn't done."
School resource officer Chase Boyd recalls confronting Apalachee High School Shooter.
— Jeff Charles, Doni's St. Bernard🏴 (@jeffcharlesjr) December 31, 2024
"He wasn't done." pic.twitter.com/DBfQdEEcMv
Gray is facing a myriad of charges. His father has also been indicted.
A Georgia grand jury indicted accused shooter Colt Gray, 14, on 55 charges, including four counts of felony and malice murder. His father, Colin Gray, was indicted on 29 counts, including two counts of second-degree murder. The indictment alleged Colin Gray gave his son “access to a firearm and ammunition after receiving sufficient warning that Colt Gray would endanger the bodily safety of another.” Both have pleaded not guilty.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation identified Gray shortly after news broke about the shooting.
Subsequent reports indicated that anger over the lack of acceptance of trans-identified individuals that motivated Gray to commit the school shooting. He allegedly expressed frustrations over the issue in a series of social media posts.
The alleged shooter used Discord to discuss his plans. One message stated that he is “committing a mass shooting” and “waiting a good 2-3 years.”
It was later revealed that Gray had been constantly bullied for being gay. Colin Gray, his father, said “He was ridiculed…day after day after day.”
Gray also displayed admiration for Adam Lanza, who carried out the school shooting in Sandy Hook, Connecticut. He had been on the FBI’s radar since May 2023. The authorities did not pursue further action because they found insufficient evidence to make an arrest.
Colin Gray, Colt’s father, is facing multiple charges for allegedly providing his son with the weapon used to commit the shooting. These include four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder, and eight counts of cruelty to children.
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