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A MOTHER has confirmed that her 14-year-old son was killed in a shooting at a Georgia high school that saw three others gunned down.
Mason Schermerhorn’s family reached out to the community after the shooting at Apalachee High School on Wednesday morning.
They couldn’t get in contact with the teen, who is autistic, and worried for his safety.
“If he is escalated, PLEASE use a calm voice with him,” family members wrote on social media.
“Let him know his mom is looking for him for reassurance.”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigations has reported that Colt Gray, the 14-year-old believed to be the shooter, is facing murder charges and will undergo trial as an adult.
Three other people, including two teachers, were killed in the shooting, said the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office.
Nine others were injured by gunshot wounds and at least five people were being treated for symptoms of panic attacks.
FULL STORY – WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR
The family of Georgia school shooter Colt Gray threatened to go ‘full throttle’ after the 14-year-old was charged as an adult for murdering four people on Wednesday.
Gray’s relatives leapt to his defense within hours of him opening fire at Apalachee High School, where he allegedly killed four people and injured nine others.
The teenager’s aunt, Annie Polhamus Brown, took to Facebook during the aftermath, bringing up the issues he ‘dealt with’ and saying she ‘will take care of my nephew and what he needs on this side.’
‘Just check yourself before you speak about a child that never asked to deal with the bull**** he saw on a daily basis,’ she said in the posts, which have now been deleted.
‘Y’all ready to see Polhamus blood in full throttle? Nah, I wouldn’t either.’
The social media posts sparked fury as tributes poured in for the four victims in the tragedy, teachers Christina Irimie and Richard Aspinwall, and students Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14.
Colt Gray’s suspected murder weapon can be seen in the corridor of Apalachee High School where he allegedly killed four and injured nine people
Gray’s aunt Annie Polhamus Brown made Facebook posts online fuming over the decision to charge her nephew as an adult
Within hours of him opening fire at Apalachee High School, his aunt leapt to his defense while bringing up the issues he ‘dealt with’ and saying she ‘will take care of my nephew and what he needs on this side’
Families gathered to mourn the four victims of the senseless shooting on Wednesday evening
Authorities say they are still investigating how Gray was able to bring an AR-style weapon inside his school, with footage of the aftermath appearing to show the weapon on the floor as terrified students were escorted down hallways to safety.
As parents and police raced to the school in Winder, Georgia, Polhamus Brown took to Facebook to plead for help in contacting the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
‘Please someone get me in touch with GBI!!! I’ve tried calling!’ she wrote, following up with: ‘I am not scared, I will not back down.’
‘I will not leave my nephew standing alone!!!’ she continued in the post. ‘When Uvalde (school shooting) happened, I told my own children that ‘only hurt people hurt people.”
Polhamus Brown said she did ‘everything I could to fight for my nephew’, as she called out people for ‘playing the blame game.’
She did also have some words for the victims of the shooting, saying the ‘families affected by my nephew’s actions deserve all the attention now.’
‘I will NOT disrespect other parents and families that are dealing with this tragedy on the opposite end. THEY DID NOT DESERVE THIS,’ she wrote.
One apparent relative said Colt ‘never asked for what he’s been through – I’m with you 1000000%. Prayers for EVERYONE affected’
A commenter claiming to be a former teacher of the alleged school shooter described him as a ‘sweet boy’ and said: ‘I taught Colt and know first hand he dealt with so much!’
At least 13 people were shot in the chaos, including two students and two teachers killed
While Polhamus Brown’s remarks sparked backlash online from some, her Facebook friends stood behind her and echoed her comments on the tragedy.
One apparent relative said Colt ‘never asked for what he’s been through – I’m with you 1000000%. Prayers for EVERYONE affected.’
Another commenter, claiming to be a former teacher of the alleged school shooter, said: ‘I taught Colt and know first hand he dealt with so much!
‘I love him and will be thinking about him and your family as you go through this tragedy! Such a sweet boy.’
After Polhamus Brown’s social media posts emerged, some criticized her remarks, with one saying the alleged shooter’s ‘family failed him, and now you wanna make excuses.’
Officials said that Gray’s shooting spree was ended within minutes, and he immediately surrendered when confronted by law enforcement, and ‘gave up and got on the ground.’
It is unclear how the 14-year-old gunman got ahold of the weapon that was used in the attack, with cops reportedly raiding his family home in the hours after the shooting.
Mason Schermerhorn, 14, an autistic student at Apalachee High School, was the first victim to be identified. He was among four people killed in the mass shooting
Teachers Christina Irimie and Richard Aspinwall lost their lives in the tragedy
Student Christian Angulo, 14, was also shot dead in the senseless shooting
Following his arrest, Gray will be charged with murder and will be tried as an adult, the Director of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
According to law enforcement, Gray opened fire at approximately 10:23am, hitting at least 13 people as frantic scenes took over the school.
Images showed students streaming out onto the campus as terrified parents raced to find their children, with one mother describing the scene outside the school as pure ‘chaos.’
A junior at the school, Lyela Sayerath, said she was sat next to Colt Gray in algebra class just minutes before he began the shooting spree.
She told CNN that Colt left the classroom at the beginning of their class at 9:45am, around half an hour before active shooter alerts sounded.
Gray didn’t take a bathroom pass, she said, leading her to initially think he was merely skipping class – before a loudspeaker announcement told teachers to check their emails.
Shortly after, Sayerath said Gray returned outside their classroom, and a student got up to open the door for him before jumping back at the sight of his gun.
‘I guess he saw we weren’t going to let him in. And I guess the classroom next to me, their door was open, so I think he just started shooting in the classroom,’ she said.
Lyela Sayarath, a junior at Apalachee High School, said she was sat next to shooter Colt Gray, 14, in algebra class just moments before he opened fire
Cops raced to the scene as a law enforcement officer apprehended Gray within minutes of shots ringing out
Sayerath said Gray proceeded to fire off a number of bullets ‘one after another’, adding: ‘When we heard it, most people just dropped to the floor and like kind of crawled in an area like piled on top of each other.’
Sayerath said her friend was in the next classroom and witnessed someone being shot, which left him ‘shaken up’. ‘He saw somebody get shot. He had blood on him. He was kinda limping. He looked horrified,’ she added.
Describing her classmate, Sayarath said Gray ‘never really talked, he wasn’t (in school) most times, he would just skip class… Even when he would have talked, it was one word answers.’
Sayarath said she ‘wasn’t surprised’ when Gray was identified as the shooter, and said that ‘when you think of shooters and the way they act, it’s usually the quiet kid and he was the one that fit that description.’
As information floods in on the school shooting – officially the deadliest in Georgia’s history – students and parents shared their shock at the horror that unfolded.
Students and faculty broke down in tears as they remembered the victims at a vigil on Wednesday evening
Concerned parents gathered at the school on Wednesday
Heartbreaking messages between a student at Apalachee High School and his mom have revealed the moment kids learned there was an active shooter
One mother, Erin Clark, shared the text exchange she had with her son Ethan from the moment he learned there was an active shooter at his school.
He wrote: ‘school shooting rn (right now). I’m scared. I’m not joking.’
His mom responded instantly, assuring him that she was leaving work. In a heartbreaking response, Ethan wrote: ‘I love you.’
‘Love you too baby. Where are you?’ Clark said. Ethan told her that he was in class, adding ‘someone’s dead.’
Many students filmed the aftermath, with one shaken grandfather revealing his granddaughters ‘were led out past blood and victims’ after the shooting.
‘They heard the shots, had SWAT come in guns drawn in their room looking for shooters,’ James Shappard said. ‘No kid should have to go through that.’
