Mother of Apalachee High School shooting suspect charged with elder abuse, tying mother to chair: report

A woman whose son is accused in the shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia earlier this month has been charged with duct-tape her elderly mother to a chair, stealing her phone and damaging her home, according to a local report.

Marcee Gray, 43, whose son Colt Gray allegedly shot and killed two students and two teachers, was charged Monday in the alleged abuse of her mother Deborah Polhamus, then 73, in November, the Atlanta-Journal Constitution reported, citing an incident report.

Polhamus was tied to a chair for nearly 24 hours in her Fitzgerald, Ben Hill County, home after she was found by a friend of her daughter, Annie Brown, who lives in Florida. Brown told police she became concerned about her mother when she couldn’t reach her by phone and asked her friend to check on her.

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The incident took place on November 3, after Marcee asked her mother to accompany her to confront her ex, Colin Gray, Colt Gray’s father.

When she refused, Marcee is accused of duct-taping her mother to a chair, stealing her mother’s iPhone, as well as damaging a bathroom mirror and the back door of the elderly woman’s home.

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The incident report accuses Marcee of throwing her mother against a wall, causing a cut to her left wrist. Marcee allegedly said that since her mother wouldn’t leave, she was going to tie her to a chair and take her phone so she wouldn’t call anyone.

Polhamus suffered a wrist injury and bruises, but told officers she “did not want to see Marcee be a criminal for the rest of her life,” the report said.

It’s unclear why Marcee would confront her ex.

She was arrested in December and granted $5,300 bail in April before being released.

Marcee was charged with a series of charges including exploitation and intimidation of an elderly person, unlawful confinement, criminal damage to property and theft, according to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution.

She has a lengthy criminal record, which includes drug use and property damage, according to police and court records.

A week after the fatal incident, she apologized to the victims’ families in an open letter.

“To the parents and families of those affected by the tragic events at Apalachee High School, I want to say that I am truly sorry from the bottom of my heart,” she wrote in the letter.

“If I could take Mason and Christian’s place, I would in a heartbeat,” she wrote, later adding that her “heart breaks for the two teachers who gave their lives in the service of teaching and protecting our children.”

Colt Gray shot 11 people in total during the September 4 shootings and injured two others.

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He was able to bring the AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle to school himself by hiding it in his backpack, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) confirmed.

Colt left his class after asking a teacher if he could go to the school office and talk to someone. The teacher allowed him to leave and take his belongings with him.

“He then went to the bathroom, where he hid from the teachers, and later allegedly pulled out his rifle and started shooting, killing two students and two teachers.”

The victims were identified as Richard Aspinwall, 39, Cristina Irimie, 53, and Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14.

Marcee called the school counselor the morning of the shooting to alert authorities about a disturbing message she had received from her son, she said in an interview with ABC News.

She said the last message she received from her son was: “I’m sorry, mom,” and that her father received similar texts: “I’m sorry” and “You’re not to blame for this.”

Colt has been charged with four counts of murder, with more charges expected.

His father, Colin, 54, is accused of “knowingly permitting” his son to possess the gun he used in the attack, police said. He has been charged with two counts of second-degree murder, four counts of involuntary manslaughter and eight counts of child cruelty.

Authorities said Gray’s father, Colin Gray, gave Colt access to the rifle used in the shooting. He is the first parent of a school shooting suspect to be charged in Georgia.

Fox News’ Mollie Markowitz contributed to this report.

Source of the original article: Mother of Apalachee High School shooting suspect charged with elder abuse, tying mother to chair: report