Colin Gray, the father of a teenager alleged to have shot and killed four people at Apalachee High School, entered a not guilty plea Thursday morning.
Gray did not appear in the Barrow County courtroom. His attorney, Jimmy Berry, entered the plea on his behalf and waived a formal arraignment.
Berry said he plans to file more than two dozen new motions in the case in the next two weeks. However, he did not enter a request for bond, and it is unknown when the next hearing will be.
The father and son have been jailed since their arrests. In October, they were indicted separately by a grand jury.
Gray faces 29 charges, including second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, second-degree cruelty to children and reckless conduct, for his alleged involvement in the Sept. 4 shooting.
The grand jury said in the indictment that Gray allowed his 14-year-old son, Colt Gray, to possess a firearm and ammunition after “receiving sufficient warning that [he] would harm and endanger the bodily safety of another.”
Investigators have also testified in court that Colin Gray bought the AR-15-style rifle his son allegedly used in the school shooting as a Christmas present for him last year — seven months after both were questioned by police over online threats.
Colt Gray is accused of killing two students and two teachers and injuring several others at Apalachee High School. He was indicted on 55 counts, including malice murder and felony murder, and will be tried as an adult.
The teen entered a not guilty plea last month and also waived arraignment.
Since then, prosecutors issued subpoenas to three local shooting ranges for information about the Grays’ using their facilities. They also subpoenaed Amazon for their purchase history.
The case marks just the second time in the country that a parent has been charged in connection with a mass shooting by their child.
Jennifer and James Crumbley were found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for allowing their son, Ethan Crumbley, to have a gun despite his declining mental health. Ethan was convicted of killing four students at Oxford High School in Michigan and sentenced to life in prison without parole last year.
