The mother of Apalachee High School shooter Colt Gray reportedly called the school to warn of an 'extreme emergency' on the morning that he killed four people and injured nine more.
Marcee Gray was seen in text messages shared by The Washington Post telling her family: “I told them it was an extreme emergency and for them to go immediately and find [Colt) to check on him.”The Post reported that a call log from the family's shared phone plan shows Marcee Gray made a 10-minute call to the school at 9:50am Wednesday, about half an hour before Colt opened fire.
Marcee's father, Charles Polhamus, told The New York Post that Colt had texted an apology to his mother prior to the shooting, prompting her to call the school.
'I’m sorry, mom,' the text read.
Marcee then began driving to the school, more than three hours away. But about half way there she learned that the tragedy she was hoping to avert had already taken place.
A school counselor had told Marcee that her Colt had been talking about school shootings that morning, according to Gray's sister Annie Brown who spoke to The Post.
Soon after the shooting began, reports surfaced that Apalachee High School received a warning that the tragedy could unfold.
In reported texts sent by Marcee, she told her family: 'I was the one that notified the school counselor at the high school.'
According to Brown, her sister called the school because she learned something concerning that made her fear an 'impending disaster', however it is not reported what it was that she learned.
Annie Brown said that Marcee was told by a counselor that her son was displaying disturbing behavior that morning, ominously talking about school shootings, the New York media outlet reported.
At the same time, one of Colt's classmates Lyela Sayarath - who previously shared a chilling account of how close she came to death - told the outlet that a school administrator went to find Colt in their class.
In a previous account to CNN, Sayarath said Colt frequently skipped classes and she assumed that was what he was doing when he left the classroom minutes before the administrator arrived.
However, there was some confusion as there was another student with a similar name to Colt's in the class. Neither was in the room, and the administrator left the room with the similarly named student's backpack.
Minutes later, the shooting began.
The texts offer a clearer picture about how Colt's family understood his state of mind and how close school officials came to finding him before he opened fire.
In one exchange after the shooting, Marcee texted her sister that she was questioning why officials had not found her son in time, as she felt there was a 'long time for them to intervene so I’m curious to know what happened in that time.'
Further text exchanges reported from Marcee's sister showed that Colt's school and family were also in contact regarding his deteriorating mental health at least a week before the shooting.
In one text, Brown reportedly told a relative that Colt was having 'homicidal and suicidal thoughts.'
'He shouldn’t have a gun, and he should’ve been in THERAPY months ago,' she added in the text.
It comes as the teen's, Colin Gray, has also been charged with a litany of crimes, including murder. Prosecutors say he gave his son the weapon 'with knowledge he was a threat to himself and others.'
Both father and son are facing life in prison.
Brown said that her nephew had spent months 'begging' for mental health help, but the 'adults around him failed him.'
Brown said that her nephew had spent months 'begging' for mental health help, but the 'adults around him failed him.'
This photo is all over the internet.
Her life has been hell. Drugs seem to be her thing. Her husband knows nothing but abuse both as a victim and as the abuser.
It’s pretty disrespectful to post the mother’s past mugshot with this article. She did warn the school and is not being charged with a crime. Do better.