GA - Apalachee High School shooting, 4 dead, 9 injured, Winder, Barrow County - 04 September 2024 *father and son arrested*

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Her account made me cry.

School shootings are not normal, should never be normal. What kind of craziness are we as a country asking our students and teachers to train for repeatedly so that one day, when it's not a drill, they will have a plan of action?

This is insanity.

MOO.

We had tornado drills. Now I believe some states have laws requiring school shooting drills. I still think metal detectors could be used. That 14 year old killer and others would never get their guns through metal detectors.

We go to the moon and have satellites so I believe there are ways technology could help.

2 Cents
 
That account is supported by a call log from the family’s shared phone plan, which shows a 10-minute call from the mother’s phone to the school starting at 9:50 a.m. — about a half-hour before witnesses have said the gunman opened fire.

“I was the one that notified the school counselor at the high school,” Marcee Gray texted her sister following the shooting on Sept. 4, according to a screenshot of the exchange. “I told them it was an extreme emergency and for them to go immediately and find [my son] to check on him.”
 
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I understand the arguments being discussed here re: the culpability of Colt's parent(s), the legal morass surrounding it, the lack of mental help intervention, etc.

The FBI/LE went to talk to Colt and his dad about school threats. After that/later that same year, Colin bought Colt an AR-15. To me that reeks of Colin snubbing or rebelling against "government interference" in their personal lives. (Very much MOO.) Now multiple people are dead. I absolutely feel that in this particular case, Colin bears a large responsibility (along with Colt).

I also feel like the victims (the murdered, the wounded, the forevermore traumatized witnesses) are being minimized in the conversation.

MOO.
At first, I was all about Colin being severely punished. But if Colt convinced LE that he wasn't the author of the threatening posts, why would the father think otherwise? So, removing that as evidence, what else pointed to Colt being a ticking time bomb? IDK, there may be loads of evidence. I am genuinely asking bc I haven't kept up with the evidence. TIA
 
Oddly, one of the LE people at the latest press conference said that in addition to the suspect "Colt Gray," there is another student at the school by the name of "Colton Gray," who wasn't involved in the shooting. I assume they confirmed that, but it seems strange to me. But I guess it could be a very common name...

JMO
This Wapo article claims they grabbed the wrong students bag. Im assuming this may be him.
 
That account is supported by a call log from the family’s shared phone plan, which shows a 10-minute call from the mother’s phone to the school starting at 9:50 a.m. — about a half-hour before witnesses have said the gunman opened fire.

“I was the one that notified the school counselor at the high school,” Marcee Gray texted her sister following the shooting on Sept. 4, according to a screenshot of the exchange. “I told them it was an extreme emergency and for them to go immediately and find [my son] to check on him.”
How did she know?
 
Her account made me cry.

School shootings are not normal, should never be normal. What kind of craziness are we as a country asking our students and teachers to train for repeatedly so that one day, when it's not a drill, they will have a plan of action?

This is insanity.

MOO.
I am shocked that their mandated active shooter drills in GA just became law last year? I thought after Columbine that they were mandated nation wide. I was so wrong. I'm glad that the loss of life wasn't any greater; it certainly could have been. I can't imagine how she felt knowing her daughter was also somewhere in the building.
 
We had tornado drills. Now I believe some states have laws requiring school shooting drills. I still think metal detectors could be used. That 14 year old killer and others would never get their guns through metal detectors.

We go to the moon and have satellites so I believe there are ways technology could help.

2 Cents
All but 13 states have mandatory active shooter drills (according to article linked a few messages back.)
 
The article isn't clear. Did the counselor call Colt's Mom first, or did the Mom call the counselor first, or were multiple calls exchanged?
From what i read in the post, sounds like mom initiated contact,to share her concerns and the counselor told her CG had been talking about school shootings. The call was roughly 10 minutes long and was iniated roughly 30 minutes prior to the shooting.
 
We had discussion relative to cell phone use during emergencies. If I recall, local LE recommended to attempt to minimize call volume so as to ensure emergency services had good cell service.

Now, I don't know too much about all this, how many phone calls/texts does it take to overwhelm say, the Verizon network, in a given area. Our High School and Middle School comprised near 2,000 students. If half of them began texting back and forth, would that affect the network(s), slowing down or preventing service?

Another extremely serious concern was call sounds alerting a potential intruder, phones ringing, message notifications, etc. This issue trumped all others in terms of training for armed intruder in the building. Indeed, it was thought to be potentially deadly.

I had the honor of being a sweeper. This term was used for teams of men trained to go throughout the building in armed intruder drills, "sweeping" the entire building for students caught in compromising areas, not able to be behind a locked classroom door. Those in the bathroom, hallway, gym, auditorium, etc.

The greatest challenge was going in to lockdown during lunch, when 300 students were in the cafeteria, and the drill went down.

To shed a bit more light on the training, my good friend was charged with being the contact, in a secure area, with radio. We even had contingency plans in the event his was killed, so as to provide for continued communication.

Lastly, local LE trained extensively, in the building(s), and we trained with them. Consider this, how were they to know, when they entered the building, who WE are, and not mistake US for the intruder? Serious questions, and serious training. Brutal.

I'll never change my opinion on prevention of arms entering a public school building, whatever the cost to do so. Never.

The security system used at that school in Winder is the exact system used by several local area schools here. Faculty and staff can initiate a lockdown upon pressing a button on their ID badges more than a certain number of times. That automatically sends out an alert of an active shooter to LE, faculty, and staff. The lockdown is initiated immediately, and no cell phones are needed to contact. LE. On the whole, I do think cellphones would make students less safe in an active shooter situation. moo
 
The greatest challenge was going in to lockdown during lunch, when 300 students were in the cafeteria, and the drill went down.

Yes, I remember these situations all too well..we had three separate cafeteria periods, and typically a planned fire drill or anything else that was for practice would not be called during those periods.

Over the years we’ve had some bomb threats. They were pranks but of course at the time that is unknown, so instead of lockdowns, those call for evacuations.

In evacuations it’s the opposite..instead of huddling quietly away from the classroom door, the goal is to get out quickly to an established perimeter far enough away.

We cannot return until after LE has checked every iota of the building. We’ve been outside for hours in the snow and of course with no time to get our coats.

Yes it’s true that this could potentially be a school shooter calling in a threat to get the students outside. Wasn’t there a school shooting by an 11-year old, something like that, who pulled the fire alarm just for that reason?

Yet I still believe in metal detectors, as the greater probability would be someone attempting to get inside.

Slightly off topic but IMO very important…parents, find out WHERE your children will be sent in the event of an evacuation.
I was a mother at the age of 24, and not until ten years later when I became a teacher did I realize that I didn’t know where my daughter would’ve been sent.
We didn’t have cell phones then and now you do, but when every second counts your child may not have the phone if it’s locked away.

JMO and JME
 
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From what i read in the post, sounds like mom initiated contact,to share her concerns and the counselor told her CG had been talking about school shootings. The call was roughly 10 minutes long and was iniated roughly 30 minutes prior to the shooting.
I think that one sentence in the Post article is incorrect. I think they intended to report that Colt’s mom told the counselor that Colt had been talking about school shootings that morning, not that the counselor told Colt’s mom that Colt had been talking to him/her (the counselor) that morning about school shootings.

Jmo
 
I think that one sentence in the Post article is incorrect. I think they intended to report that Colt’s mom told the counselor that Colt had been talking about school shootings that morning, not that the counselor told Colt’s mom that Colt had been talking to him/her (the counselor) that morning about school shootings.

Jmo
I was wondering that too
 
I am glad to see that the truth is coming out about that warning call before the shooting. It was in the media reports at the very beginning, that there was a threat called in around 9:50 that multiple schools were going to have shootings, but Apalachee was going to be first. Then that was scrubbed from all the reports and all that was said was that was a false report, there was no threat received. And now we hear all of this. Heads are going to roll.
WHY they didn't call for an internal lockdown when that call came in, until they could investigate?
And I still don't understand the timeline for the shooter's attendance at this school, and one of the main witnesses from his class saying he skipped a lot of school but officials saying this was only his second day at the school. I trust that will eventually get cleared up, too.
I am so sorry this was not stopped in time. It really hurts to know how close it was. Heartbreaking.
 
I think that one sentence in the Post article is incorrect. I think they intended to report that Colt’s mom told the counselor that Colt had been talking about school shootings that morning, not that the counselor told Colt’s mom that Colt had been talking to him/her (the counselor) that morning about school shootings.

Jmo
I thought the same thing. Especially if this was his second day at the school, I can't imagine he was already speaking to a counselor. Unless during his first period class he did something that sent him to a counselor.
 
I thought the same thing. Especially if this was his second day at the school, I can't imagine he was already speaking to a counselor. Unless during his first period class he did something that sent him to a counselor.
Yes, it must be a mistake in wording because if he had talked to the counselor about school shootings I can't imagine they'd let him go back to class while they called mom!
 
Yes, it must be a mistake in wording because if he had talked to the counselor about school shootings I can't imagine they'd let him go back to class while they called mom!
My impression was that the mother called the counselor and not vice-versa—-I could be mistaken.
In any event I agree and have been wondering…during a 10 minute phone call between the mother and the guidance counselor, steps should have been taken IMMEDIATELY and not after 10 minutes of discussion regarding CG talking that morning about shooting up the school.

Perhaps the counselor did go on immediate alert because we’ve read about the teachers hitting the emergency button on their new devices.

I believe the lockdown code should have gone into instant effect, although if CG were in his classroom that would be dangerous for that class and teacher.

IMO the phone call with mom, no matter who initiated it, should have rapidly sent a signal to LE to flood the school, and if CG were in the classroom instead of roaming, waste no time in moving in on him before he becomes aware.

If possible.

JMO
 
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From what i read in the post, sounds like mom initiated contact,to share her concerns and the counselor told her CG had been talking about school shootings. The call was roughly 10 minutes long and was iniated roughly 30 minutes prior to the shooting.

The Post article also says that the mother and her family were aware a week or so ago that the shooter was homicidal or suicidal. Why wasn't the school and/or authorities notified at that time, if he was deemed to be possibly homicidal, why weren't officials notified?

Lots of red flags before that morning, in the days leading up to the shooting.
 
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