@meghannmcuniff: Jud Smith, the sheriff of Barrow County, Georgia, went to Apalachee High School in Winder after a gunman killed four people on Sept. 4, 2024. He testified in the criminal trial for the father of the gunman on Monday (February 16), and he said he was "overwhelmed" by what he saw at the school. "The people and the parents and the cars and the emergency response, just completely overwhelming," Smith testified. Smith saw Jim Fullington, chief of the Winder Police Department, and Fullington told him to stop and "don't walk anymore. Let me walk to you." "And he hugged me and said, 'Are you okay?' And he noticed I had a lot of blood on me, and I said, 'I'm fine,'" Smith testified. As they spoke, Smith noticed "that thousands of parents and people were showing up at one time, and we were trying to decide how we were going to manage through the school system, getting parents and kids and loved ones together." He said the law enforecement response "was quite overwhelming." "There was over 140, 150 law enforcement officers that responded, agencies from all across north Georgia. Federal agencies that showed up. State agencies that showed up. And that's just well over 150 just in the first hour," Smith said. Colin Gray is charged with 29 crimes, including second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter, for his actions and inactions involving his son before the shooting, including gifting him the rifle used in the massacre, despite being told by law enforcement to restrict his access to weapons. The victims were Mason Schermerhorn, 14; Christian Angulo, 14; Richard Aspinwall, 39 and a math teacher and defensive coordinator for the school's football team; and Cristina Irimie, 53 and a math teacher. Colin Gray's son, Colt Gray, is awaiting trial on 55 charges, including counts of murder and aggravated assault. Jury selection was moved from Barrow County to Hall County because of extensive pretrial publicity in Barrow County, but the trial is being held in Winder. Nicholas Primm, the chief judge in Georgia's Piedmont Judicial Circuit, is presiding. You can watch Smith testify about meeting with family members of the victims here @Meghann Cuniff. You can watch some of the prosecutor’s opening statement here @Meghann Cuniff and the defense opening here @Meghann Cuniff. #law #crime #court #thinblueline #police

Meghann Cuniff

Open In TikTok:

Region: US

Tuesday 17 February 2026 14:17:37 GMT