Apalachee High School shooting suspect charged with quadruple murder

The 14-year-old student accused of killing four people and injuring nine others at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

In a post on X, the GBI said additional charges are expected to be filed against the boy, whom NPR is not naming.

The suspect is currently being held at the Gainesville Regional Youth Detention Center, where his first court appearance is scheduled virtually for Friday at 8:30 a.m. GBI Director Chris Hosey told reporters Wednesday that officials intend to try the suspected shooter as an adult.

“The investigation into the shooting at Apalachee HS is still active and ongoing,” the GBI said.

Two teachers and two students were killed. The GBI has identified the dead as students Christian Angulo (14) and Mason Schermerhorn (14) and teachers Richard Aspinwall (39) and Christina Irimie (53).

Autopsies of the four victims will be performed on Thursday, the GBI said.

At least nine other people were injured and taken to various hospitals for treatment. The suspect was arrested at the school.

Investigators described the weapon used in the shooting as an “AR-style platform weapon.”

The GBI said Thursday that the investigation “remains active and ongoing.”

“This is Day 2 of a very complex investigation and the integrity of the case is of the utmost importance,” the agency wrote on X. “We ask for the public’s patience as we work to ensure a successful prosecution and justice for the victims.”

The FBI had already investigated the suspected shooter

In a post on XThe FBI said it received “multiple anonymous tips about online threats to carry out a school shooting at an unknown location and time” in May 2023, and the threats included photos of weapons.

The FBI said the sheriff’s office in nearby Jackson County had identified “a possible subject,” a 13-year-old boy, and was questioning him and his father.

“The father stated he had hunting weapons in the house, but the offender did not have unsupervised access to them. The offender denied making the threats online,” the FBI said.

The FBI said local schools have been instructed to continue monitoring the individual, but there are no probable causes for an arrest or further police action. The agency confirmed that the teenager was the perpetrator taken into custody after Wednesday’s shooting.

A piece of technology helped in the quick response to the shooting

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith thanked Centegix, an emergency alert technology, for alerting emergency responders to Wednesday’s shooting.

WABE: School districts in metro Atlanta take precautions after shooting at Apalachee High School

The Atlanta-based company makes a credit card-sized ID card that can be worn on a lanyard. The ID card features a button that allows staff to immediately notify the school, other employees and police of any health or safety issues on campus, NPR member station WABE reported.

“It alerts us that there is an active situation at a school. That has been pressed. We’ve known about that for about a week now,” Smith told reporters at a press conference Wednesday evening.

Copyright: NPR