Judge Nicholas Primm is overseeing the non-negotiated plea and sentencing hearing, where both sides will present summaries, evidence, and sentencing recommendations before the judge determines the sentence.

Reporting on the case comes from WSB and CNN, which carried the updated plea and sentencing developments.

A key timeline shows the evolution from a 2023 online threat tip through the 2024 attack, to the father Colin Gray’s related convictions, and culminating in Colt Gray’s planned guilty plea and sentencing in July 2026.

The incident at Apalachee High School left four people dead and multiple others injured.

Investigators described Colt Gray carrying an assault-style rifle onto a school bus, leaving his class to execute a plotted attack, with planning notes indicating casualty estimates.

Evidence suggested a notebook with step-by-step instructions and a projected casualty count, underscoring the premeditation of the attack.

Context notes include prior online threats, grade-skipping behavior, and family concerns about mental health and firearm access before the incident.

The hearing will feature victim impact statements, allocution by the defendant, and presentation of evidence and sentencing arguments before the judge.

Media reports indicate that a life-in-prison sentence is expected, with the judge's ruling and Georgia law determining whether parole is possible.

In Barrow County, Georgia, Colt Gray, who was 14 at the time, pleaded guilty to all 55 counts, including murder and cruelty to children, for the September 4, 2024 Apalachee High School shooting, after previously entering a not guilty plea.

Gray was charged as an adult and faced a total of 55 counts, with prosecutors citing a notebook containing step-by-step instructions and a diagram as part of the planning evidence.

The guilty plea was entered on July 24, 2026, at Barrow County Superior Court in Winder, with sentencing to follow in a non-negotiated proceeding.