Overview
- Court filings set a non‑negotiated plea and sentencing hearing for July 24, 2026, signaling Colt Gray intends to change his earlier not‑guilty plea.
- Gray, 16, faces 55 counts filed in 2024 including malice and felony murder, aggravated assault, and cruelty to children with a combined statutory maximum of about 180 years.
- Prosecutors say Gray carefully planned the Sept. 2024 attack, leaving a notebook with step‑by‑step instructions, creating a shrine to a prior shooter, prepping the rifle in a bathroom, and bringing the weapon to school wrapped in poster board.
- Gray’s father, Colin Gray, was convicted in March 2026 for supplying the rifle and faces sentencing later this month, and the non‑negotiated plea means the judge—not a deal—will determine Colt’s sentence after both sides present recommendations.
- The case has moved venues to seek an impartial jury and continues to shape debate over access to guns, parental liability, and the legal handling of juveniles prosecuted as adults while survivors and families await sentencing.