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Murder charges filed against the father of a 14-year-old boy accused of a Georgia school shooting follow the successful prosecution of two parents in Michigan who were held responsible for a similar tragedy at a school north of Detroit.
Is it a sign of a crackdown on parents accused of gross negligence when it comes to kids and guns? Could public outrage lead to more prosecutions or changes in law in other states, too?
“It’s a matter of looking at the relationship between what the child says and does and what the parent knows about what the child says and does”, said David Shapiro, a former prosecutor who teaches at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York.
Colin Gray, 54, has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and second-degree murder related to the deaths of two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, outside Atlanta. Nine more people were wounded.
Gray’s son, Colt Gray, is charged with murder. Investigators said he used a “semi-automatic AR-15 style rifle” in the attack.
The charges against Colin Gray “are directly connected with the actions of his son and allowing him to possess a weapon”, said Chris Hosey, director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Milestone in Michigan
James and Jennifer Crumbley were convicted of involuntary manslaughter earlier this year for the deaths of four students at Oxford High School in 2021. It was the first time that parents were held criminally responsible for a U.S. mass school shooting. They’re serving 10-year prison terms while appeals are pending.
The Crumbleys didn’t know what son Ethan Crumbley was planning.
