The Bishop of Atlanta, the Rt. Rev. Robert Wright has issued a prayer in the wake of the shooting at Apalachee High School in rural Winder, Georgia today.
Initial reports from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation state a 14-year old suspect, Colt Gray, was booked on four counts of murder after he opened fire at students and teachers in the school, killing two students and two teachers, and wounding a teacher and eight students.
Gray had been interviewed by law enforcement in May 2023 after the FBI received “several anonymous tips about online threats to commit a school shooting at an unidentified location and time,” according to a joint statement from the FBI’s Atlanta office and the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. The online threats included photographs of guns, the statement said.
“The father stated he had hunting guns in the house, but the subject did not have unsupervised access to them,” the statement said. “The subject denied making the threats online.”
Gray, one of 1912 students at the school, will be tried as an adult.
Writing on Facebook, Bishop Wright said:
“Gracious God, our strength and consolation, be present with our children and their families at Apalachee High School. Dispatch your angels to those families who have lost children and loved ones; help them to feel your love and care even at this dark hour. Heal those who have been hospitalized through the care of skilled professionals and restore them to health. Bless the first responders and law enforcement officers who run towards danger on our behalf. And finally, we pray for the one who committed this violence that they would repent and live the rest of their days as your healing instrument, this we pray in the name of Jesus, Lord and friend.”
