A U.S. father has been sentenced to 15 years in prison, after becoming the first parent convicted of murder over a mass shooting carried out by their child.
Colin Gray was found guilty over the 2024 Georgia school shooting where his son, Colt Gray, killed four people.
Colt was sentenced to life in prison without parole on Tuesday (local time), while Colin was sentenced on Thursday.
Here's what you need to know about the landmark case.
Background
In September 2024, then-14-year-old Colt Gray killed four people at his high school in Winder, Georgia, about an hour from Atlanta.
He killed two students and two teachers, and injured another nine people.
At the time, prosecutors said they would seek to try Colt as an adult.
Last week, Colt pleaded guilty to all charges.
This week, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
While Georgia has the death penalty, U.S. law prohibits people from being sentenced to death for crimes committed as minors.
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Colt's father, Colin, was also arrested in September 2024 for the shooting.
In March, a jury found Colin guilty of 27 charges, including second-degree murder, cruelty to children, reckless conduct, and involuntary manslaughter.
During the trial, evidence showed Colin had given Colt the rifle used to kill the four victims as a Christmas present.
Delivering their verdict, the jury said he “failed – catastrophically – to foresee and prevent what his son concealed from him and everyone else.”
What's next?
Colin has been sentenced to 15 years in prison, with his lawyer indicating plans to appeal the conviction.
The case could set a precedent for future U.S. trials, as it is the first time a parent has been convicted of murder over a mass shooting carried out by their child.
A similar case unfolded in 2021, when then-15-year-old Ethan Crumbley killed four people at a Michigan high school.
His parents were later sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison for involuntary manslaughter in 2024.
