14-year-old brings gun to school where 4 were killed in mass shooting, Georgia cops say
A 14-year-old is accused of bringing a gun to Apalachee High School, months after a mass shooting left four people dead, Georgia authorities said.
The student was arrested just after 2 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 8, at the school in Winder, the Barrow County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Deputies did not publicly identify the teen, citing his age.
Authorities said school officials located the student and confiscated the gun without incident, adding that the teen was “cooperative and compliant.” The sheriff’s office didn’t say who reported the weapon.
The student was charged with:
- Possession of a weapon on school grounds (2 counts)
- Theft by taking
- Minor in possession of a firearm
Deputies did not list any injuries and said “there have been no reports of the student threatening anyone with the gun.”
The incident comes months after Colt Gray, 14, was accused of shooting and killing two teachers and two students at the school on Sept. 4. Nine others were injured in the incident, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said.
Later that same day, a 15-year-old student was charged after he was accused of saying he was “planning on finishing the job” of the accused Apalachee shooter at a different school in a neighboring county.
The Barrow County School System canceled classes at the school for Thursday, Jan. 9, according to a statement shared on the district’s website.
A Board of Education meeting was scheduled Thursday to discuss ”immediate safety enhancement options” and policies surrounding weapons on campus, the district said.
Floyd Cooper, a teacher at Apalachee High, said district leaders told faculty members about the armed student during a staff meeting, according to WSB-TV.
“They had an eight-minute window where they tried to find the student, neutralize the threat, and they had the opportunity to put the school on lockdown,” Cooper told the station, adding that no lockdown was issued.
“There’s a lot of anxiety among both staff and students still,” Cooper said, according to the station.
McClatchy News reached out to the Barrow County School System for comment Jan. 9 and was awaiting a response.
The 14-year-old was taken to the Regional Youth Detention Center, the sheriff’s office said.
Winder is about a 20-mile drive northwest from Athens.
This story was originally published January 9, 2025 at 2:34 PM with the headline "14-year-old brings gun to school where 4 were killed in mass shooting, Georgia cops say."