The mother of Georgia school shooter Colin Gray speaks out for the first time: She leaves a message for the victims but defends her son

Marcee Gray, the mother of Georgia school shooter Colt Gray, has spoken publicly for the first time since the tragedy, saying she would “take the place” of any victim if she could. Gray claimed she contacted Apalachee High School and spoke to a guidance counselor shortly before her 14-year-old son began shooting.

The attack left four people dead – two students and two teachers – and nine others injured. Colt was charged with four counts of murder and will be tried as an adult. His father, Colin, has also been charged with multiple counts for giving his troubled son the weapon used in the attack.

Mother breaks her silence with touching tribute

Marcee, in an interview with ABC, shared details about the moment she realized something was wrong with her son on the morning of Sept. 5. She said she contacted Colt’s school counselor that morning to inform him of a disturbing text message she had received from him.

“The counselor said, ‘I want to inform you that one of Colt’s teachers sent me an email this morning saying that Colt had been making reference to school shootings,'” Marcee claimed.

“Given my gut feeling, the text messages, and now this email, you all need to run to the classroom.”

Marcee said tearfully, “If I could take her place, I would. I would do it in a heartbeat.”

Marcee herself has a long criminal record.

The former quality engineer was arrested in Barrow County in November on suspicion of possession of methamphetamine, fentanyl and muscle relaxants. She was also charged with aggravated assault, theft by taking, trespassing, false imprisonment and failure to appear in court in Fitzgerald County in January.

Over the years, she has written several disturbing Facebook posts describing her problems with her estranged husband Colin Gray, whom she accused of abuse, the news agency reported.

In November 2022, Marcee Gray wrote, “From the first time I can remember, my husband has known nothing but abuse. Severe physical abuse (I mean everything from a broken arm at age 8 while he was fast asleep to a bar stool smashing his skull in… I still rub my fingers over the scar/graze on his scalp and think to myself, ‘How?! I can’t even comprehend it!’… this is what substance abuse can do. To a mom, a dad, a spouse, a sibling… you name it, it’s going to get them.”

In another post the same day, Marcee wrote, “I know it’s hard to understand from the outside. No one in my family or his could understand why I stayed so long. Ultimately, it was my own decision…

Criminal mother, killer son

In December 2023, Marcee Gray pleaded guilty to using a license plate to conceal her identity, second-degree criminal damage to property, and trespassing/domestic violence.

She was charged under Georgia’s First Offender Act, which allows eligible defendants to plead guilty without the need for a formal conviction.

Court records show that she was not charged with drug possession in connection with her arrest.

An arrest warrant obtained by the Daily Mail shows that Gray was found in possession of a glass jar of methamphetamine, a “bag” of fentanyl, another “bag” containing several muscle relaxants and a glass narcotics pipe.

According to the arrest warrant, she also concealed the identity of her Nissan Rogue by attaching a plate that was actually intended for a Nissan Kick.

According to court documents, she was sentenced to five years in prison, with the first 46 days in custody and the remainder suspended.

As part of her probation, she was prohibited from contacting her husband except for matters involving their children or the divorce. She was also ordered to pay $1,500 in restitution, attend a domestic violence intervention program and abstain from drugs and alcohol.

Court records also revealed that she had previously committed traffic offenses in 2019, 2014, 2008 and 2007.

Mason Schermerhorn, 14, Christian Angulo, 14, Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Cristina Irimie, 53, were all killed after their son Colt opened fire at his school.

Police say Colt surrendered his weapon when they arrived and admitted to being responsible for the attack.

Colin Gray, 54, gave his son the gun despite having previously been questioned by police about threats Colt had made to another school.

The FBI monitored father and son for over a year after the incident, but no arrests were made at the time. Colin is now accused of two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of manslaughter and eight counts of child abuse, among other things.

If convicted on all counts, he faces up to 180 years in prison.