EXPLANATION

A 14-year-old boy is said to have opened fire at Apalachee High School in the US state of Georgia, killing two students and two teachers.

A 14-year-old boy reportedly opened fire at a Georgia high school on Wednesday, killing two students and two teachers and injuring nine others. This incident is the first mass shooting at a school in the United States since the start of the school year – but the 23rd such incident in 2024.

Here you can find out everything about the victims, the suspect and the shooting.

What happened in Georgia and when?

• There was a shooting at Apalachee High School.
• Lyela Sayarath, 16, a student at the school, told CNN that she was sitting next to the suspected attacker before the shooting occurred.
• The suspected gunman left an algebra class at around 9:45 a.m. (13:45 GMT). He returned later as the class was nearing its end. A girl tried to open the door but saw the gun and did not open it. She reported that the gunman then went into the classroom next door and started shooting.
• Officials first received reports of a shooting at the school around 10:20 a.m. local time (2:20 p.m. GMT).
• Following the shooting, all schools in the district were cordoned off and police were sent to all high schools in the district.
• A CNN report said that Apalachee High School received a telephone threat early that morning that there would be shootings at five schools, with Apalachee being named as the first target.

3. This morning, there was a call at another local high school regarding a reported threat. Police responded, investigated the incident, and determined that no threat was present.

(3/3)

— GA Bureau of Investigation (@GBI_GA) 5 September 2024

Where did the filming take place?

• Apalachee High School is located in the city of Winder, Georgia, one hour outside of Atlanta, the state’s largest city and capital.
• The school has an enrollment of nearly 1,900 students and is one of three high schools in the Barrow County school system.
• In the state of Georgia, individuals must be at least 18 years old to purchase handguns. Minors are also prohibited from owning handguns. According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, Georgia ranked 15th in the United States in firearm deaths in 2019 and 10th in the South.
• Georgia ranks 46th out of 50 U.S. states in the strength of its gun laws, according to Everytown for Gun Safety, a nonprofit that advocates for gun control. The organization calls Georgia’s policies “among the weakest” in the nation.

Who is Colt Gray, the suspected shooter?

• The suspected shooter was identified by authorities as Colt Gray. He is a 14-year-old student and will be charged and tried as an adult, authorities said.
• Gray was armed with an “AR platform weapon,” or semi-automatic rifle. The AR-15, an AR platform rifle, has been involved in some of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history.
• Gray was questioned by local police in May 2023 after the FBI received “multiple anonymous tips about online threats to carry out a school shooting at an unknown location and time.”
• According to the FBI, his father had hunting weapons in the house at the time but did not allow unsupervised access to them. They also said there was not sufficient cause for an arrest at the time.
• Student Lyela Sayarath described Gray as “quite quiet.” She said: “He never really talked. I couldn’t tell you what his voice sounded like or describe his face to you. He was just there.”

Who do we know about the victims?

According to officials, four people were killed and nine others were hospitalized. The four victims were identified as follows:

• Christian Angulo, a 14-year-old student
• Mason Schermerhorn, a 14-year-old student
• Christina Irimie, a 53-year-old mathematics teacher
• Richard Aspinwall, a 39-year-old math teacher and assistant football coach

All nine hospital patients – eight students and one teacher – were injured and are expected to recover soon.

RIP to the 4 victims who tragically lost their lives today in the shooting at Apalachee High School. As pictured:

1. Richard Aspinwall (mathematics teacher)
2. Mason Schermerhorn (14-year-old student)
3. Christian Angulo (14-year-old student)
4. Christina Irimie (math teacher) pic.twitter.com/Gfg7x4UWTL

— All About Georgia (@GAFollowers) 5 September 2024

How did the presidential candidates react to the high school shooting?

• In the US, there are still two months until election night. Georgia is an important swing state that the two main candidates – Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump – are desperate to win.
• During her campaign in New Hampshire, Harris called the killings in Georgia “a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies.”
• “And it’s just outrageous that in our country, the United States of America, parents have to send their children to school every day worrying about whether they’re going to come home alive or not,” Harris said.

Today, Doug and I mourn the lives of those whose lives were cut short by the gun violence at Apalachee High School in Georgia.

Our condolences go out to the students, teachers and families affected by this shooting, and we are grateful to the first responders and police officers…

– Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) 4 September 2024

• In a message posted on social media, Trump said: “These beloved children were taken from us far too soon by a sick and deranged monster.”
• Trump himself was a victim of gun violence last month when a gunman struck him in the ear in a failed assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Yet his campaign has pledged to protect the rights of gun owners and repeal restrictions put in place under incumbent President Joe Biden.

• Trump’s vice presidential candidate JD Vance called the shooting “despicable violence” in a social media post.

Our condolences go out to all those affected by this heinous violence just days after the start of the new school year.

Our prayers tonight are with the victims, their families, and the entire community of Winder, Georgia.

— JD Vance (@JDVance) 4 September 2024

• Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz spoke about the school massacre while campaigning in Pennsylvania. “This is tragic … and we are in the midst of it at this moment, but we know that our work is aimed at preventing incidents like this in the future,” Walz added.

Our condolences go out to the families and community of Winder, Georgia as our nation reels from another tragic school shooting.

Our measures must also be in line with this goal. We must do everything in our power to ensure the safety of students and teachers.

— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) 4 September 2024

What is the situation regarding mass shootings in the USA?

• The Gun Violence Archive reported that before the Georgia shooting, there had been 384 mass shootings in the U.S. this year. The organization considers a mass shooting to be one in which four or more victims are killed or shot, not including the shooter.
• According to EdWeek, a news organization that covers the K-12 education system, there have been 23 school shootings in the United States this year.