A suspect is in custody after a shooting inside Apalachee High School in Georgia. According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, at least four people were killed and about nine were injured as a result of the September 4 incident.
More details on shooter and victim
On Wednesday morning, the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that a suspect had been arrested but did not provide further details about the person’s identity. CNN was the first to report the news. that the detainee was “of college age.”
In one of the latest case updates, authorities confirmed that the shooting suspect is a 14-year-old boy. Grey Colta high school student. He was charged with murder as an adult, according to AP.
Additionally, the victims of the school attack have been identified as teachers and two students. Nine others were taken for medical treatment from the Georgia high school campus.
C”What you see behind us is an evil thing,” Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith speaks at the first press conference outside the school on Wednesday.
Here’s What Happened at Apalachee High School
Georgia’s Apalachee High School is located in Barrow County, about 50 miles (80 km) northeast of Atlanta. According to records from Georgia education officials, the school has about 1,900 students. It became Barrow County’s second-largest public high school when it opened in 2000 and is named after the Apalachee River in the county.
It’s been just over a month since high school students returned from summer break. Officers from multiple law enforcement agencies and Fire/EMS personnel were dispatched to Apalachee around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.
After the shots rang out, two school police officers approached the 14-year-old boy. He surrendered and was taken into custody by law enforcement. Police are still investigating how Gray obtained the Colt and brought it into the school. However, officials have not yet determined what type of gun Gray used.
According to Associated PressStudents sought shelter at the high school’s football stadium as local police stormed the campus.
How officials responded to the Georgia school shooting
Helicopter video from WSB-TV showed dozens of police cars and ambulances surrounding the affected Georgia high school. Traffic to the school was backed up for more than a mile as parents tried to pick up their children, according to the AP.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp already solved school shooting in a statement.
“I have directed all state resources to respond to the incident at Apalachee High School and ask all Georgians to join my family in praying for the safety of those in our classrooms, both in Barrow County and across the state,” said Governor Kemp. “We will continue to work with our local, state, and federal partners as we gather information and respond to this situation.”
— Governor Brian P. Kemp (@GovKemp) September 4, 2024
Meanwhile, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has called for increased patrols of Atlanta schools “throughout the remainder of the day.” Dickens said the call was made “out of an abundance of caution.”
The FBI’s Atlanta office also responded to the shooting. Their statement said, “FBI Atlanta is aware of the current situation at Apalachee High School in Barrow County. Our agents are on scene to coordinate and assist local law enforcement.”
AP added that President Biden’s homeland security adviser, Liz Sherwood-Randall, has been advising him on the Georgia high school incident. In a statement cited by CNN, Biden spoke about how school shootings are no longer normal.
“What was supposed to be a joyous back-to-school season in Winder, Georgia, has now become another horrifying reminder of how gun violence continues to divide our communities. Students across the country are learning to duck and cover up instead of learning to read and write. We cannot continue to accept this as normal,” the president said.
The episode is just the latest of dozens of school shootings across the United States in recent years, including particularly deadly ones in Newtown, Connecticut, Parkland, Florida, and Uvalde, Texas. The classroom killings have sparked heated debates about gun control and strained the nerves of parents whose children are growing up accustomed to active shooter drills in the classroom. But they have done little to change national gun laws.
AP reports that so far this year, before the Georgia high school incident, there have been 29 mass killings in the United States.
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Associated Press staff writer Jeff Amy contributed to this report.
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