Category: Breaking News

The father of suspected Georgia school shooter Colt Gray on Friday took the stand in his own defense at trial, where he is accused of providing his teenage son access to a firearm before the 2024 massacre.

Colin Gray, 55, pleaded not guilty on two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of involuntary manslaughter, 20 counts of cruelty to children and five counts of reckless conduct. His then 14-year-old son, Colt Gray, is accused of opening fire at Apalachee High School on Sept. 4, 2024, killing two students, two teachers, and wounding nine others.

The tenth day of the trial kicked off with testimony from the 55-year-old, who recounted his volatile relationship with Colt and his attempts to bond with his teenage son over hunting. He also testified about receiving a visit from law enforcement prior to the shooting after receiving a tip from the FBI that his son was involved in an online conversation about school shootings.

Gray told the court that when his son was in the sixth grade, he got behind the school’s firewall to search for ways to kill him. Gray said he was concerned and had a conversation with his son when he found out about it months later, warning him that it was a very serious matter.

When Colt got to the seventh grade, Gray said, he expressed that several kids were bullying him, and he was eating lunch by himself.

“He was a real quiet kid. He was super shy, is the best way I can put it,” Gray said.

Around this time, Gray said he split with Colt’s mother, Marcee Gray, who he said was allegedly using substances. Marcee Gray moved out of their home with their two younger children. Colt stayed with him, he said, adding that he went to Colt’s school to speak to counselors and find a way to get him help and away from any bullying he was encountering.

Gray also said he thought of hunting as a way to help his son cope.

“My original thought was this would be a great way to bond with my son away from his mother and everybody else, and just kind of use that time as I did as a kid growing up to just kind of pretty much comfortable place doing something we like to do, and he can talk to me openly and freely about what challenges he may or may not be having,” Gray said.

Gray testified that he took his son to shooting ranges to practice and then to hunt for deer. He also played golf with his son and bought him a guitar because he’d always been interested in music.

He also recalled buying his son a rifle for Christmas, telling him it would be his gun if he kept attending school and doing well.

Gray also recalled that before the shooting, he was approached by authorities about his son.

He explained that Jackson County sheriffs showed up to his door to speak to him about a tip they received from the FBI that Colt was involved in a Discord conversation related to school shootings.

“I told him at one point in this conversation, if he even thought that this was related to Colt, anyway, shape or form,” Gray said he asked one of the deputies. “He asked me if I had guns in the house. I said I did, and that he could take them. He could take those guns out of my house. I will go get them.”

Gray said the deputies left the house that day and needed to gather more information about the incident. The next day, a deputy told him there were many people in the Discord chat and that they traced a suspicious IP address to California or Russia, Gray said.

“And so at that point he was like, ‘I don’t see an issue here,’” Gray said.

Gray said the deputy warned him not allow Colt to have free access to guns, and asked about how he’s storing them.

“I said, ‘They are in my master building closet where I kept the guns for most of my life,’” Gray said. “When Colt was little, I said they’re up on the top shelf of my closet, you know, not just lying around the house.”

The relationship between Gray and his son became more tense when he began requesting “pricier things,” he said.

“Sometimes, if he did not get his way about whatever it was, you know, we may have words back and forth,” Gray told the court.

Bullying at school continued to get more difficult for Colt in the seventh and eighth grades, Gray said, adding that kids would throw shampoo and milk bottles at his son on the school bus. He began to look into online schooling options for his son and thought he had secured an opportunity for him with his sister’s help. It turns out that Colt was never enrolled in online school, Gray said.

Gray said he would call his son while at work to make sure he was taking his classes.

“I remember him having a conversation with me about an algebra class, and when I got home from work, he was showing me a page of what he was working on,” Gray said. “So, I never, you know, verified and that’s my bad. I, you know, I didn’t fact-check what he was saying.”

Colt continued to fall behind in school, and Gray attempted to convince him to retake the eighth grade, he said.

“Listen, could I have done better? Yes, I could have done better. I could have done more. I see that now,” Gray said. “But the overall goal here was just get him in a comfort zone place.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has amassed as many as 10,000 hours of video in the investigation into the disappearance and possible abduction of Nancy Guthrie, an FBI official said Thursday.

The official described the collection, review and analysis of video as one of the key parts of the weekslong investigation, which began after the 84-year-old mother of “TODAY” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie was reported missing Feb. 1.

Tools can be used to enhance the videos, but each one must be watched in real time, the official said, noting that slowing them down or enhancing them takes more time.

The official said that additional canvassing was done last week to gather more material from camera systems in the Tucson-area neighborhood where Guthrie lives.

The FBI released a widely circulated security video two weeks ago showing a masked, armed man with a backpack appearing to tamper with a Google Nest doorbell camera at Nancy Guthrie’s home.

Authorities have described the man as a suspect but he has not been publicly identified. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said investigators believe Guthrie was taken from her Tucson-area home, possibly in the middle of the night.

She was last seen around 9:45 p.m. Jan. 31 after dinner at her daughter Annie Guthrie’s home, Nanos has said. She was reported missing after failing to show up at a friend’s house to watch a virtual church service.

Savannah Guthrie announced Tuesday that her family is offering a reward of up to $1 million for the recovery of her mother.

“Please keep praying without ceasing,” she said in an Instagram video. “We still believe. We still believe in a miracle. We still believe that she can come home, hope against hope. As my sister says, ‘We are blowing on the embers of hope.’”

FBI Director Kash Patel has said the images from the Nest camera were recovered from “residual data in backend systems” because Guthrie did not have a subscription that would have saved the video.

Patel said the images were captured the morning Guthrie disappeared. Two law enforcement sources told NBC News this week that one of the images released by the FBI director was captured earlier.

The agency has declined to comment on possible dates linked to the image, which shows a masked man without a backpack. The Pima County Sheriff’s Department has said that any suggestion that it was taken on a different day is “purely speculative.”

Authorities are examining other potential evidence in the case, including DNA collected from Guthrie’s home and related search locations. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos has said authorities may use genetic genealogy — a forensic tool that combines advanced DNA analysis with traditional genealogical research — in the investigation.

He said North Korea would continue to take the “toughest stand” against the U.S., but that if Washington dropped its demands for denuclearization, “there is no reason why we cannot get on well.”

That leaves the door open for the resumption of diplomacy. President Donald Trump, who met with Kim three times during his first term, has expressed interest in another face-to-face.

Kim had more contentious words for U.S. ally South Korea, describing it as his country’s “most hostile” relationship. He dismissed South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s recent efforts to improve relations, saying the North could “launch any action” if Seoul threatened its security and that its neighbor risked “complete collapse.”

The South Korean government said Thursday that it would continue to pursue its policy of peaceful coexistence.

Earlier in the week, Kim was re-elected general secretary of the Workers’ Party. His reappointment reinforces that “even amid domestic and external crises, there is no alternative to Kim Jong Un’s leadership,” Lim said.

For Kim, the party congress is also an opportunity to reinforce the authority of his family, which has ruled North Korea since its founding in 1948 and signals successors well in advance.

Earlier this month, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service told lawmakers it believed that Kim Ju Ae had entered the “designation stage” of the succession process after a period of training.

“Since late last year, North Korea has been emphasizing her status as the top-ranked figure in the protocol order,” the agency said, citing her attendance at military-related events, her visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun — a symbol of North Korea’s dynastic rule — and “the fact that she has offered opinions on certain policies during on-site inspections.”

Others have expressed skepticism.

While the younger Kim’s status in the family has risen, there is insufficient evidence to assert that she is on the verge of being named her father’s successor, said Yang Moo-jin, a distinguished professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul.

“Claiming that she ‘offered policy opinions’ simply because she may have said something when asked beside him amounts to an overly subjective and speculative assumption,” he said.

There were also no signs at the party congress that Kim Jue Ae had received an official party title or that there are plans for a meeting on successor designation, both of which have been part of the process in the past.

Still, Lim said, even if no formal steps have been taken, “efforts to lay the groundwork for Kim Ju Ae’s future power base are likely to start being carried out behind the scenes in a more sophisticated way.”

The FBI served a series of search warrants at the Los Angeles home of L.A. Unified School District Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, as well as the district’s headquarters on Wednesday morning, officials said. Sources told CBS News that the FBI also raided a Florida residence linked to Carvalho.

Agents executed the warrants at Carvalho’s home in L.A.’s San Pedro neighborhood and the district’s downtown L.A. headquarters building, the FBI reported, as well as a home in the Miami-area town of Southwest Ranches, which is located in Broward County.

Law Enforcement sources told CBS News that the search of the Broward County home is connected to Carvalho, and that the investigations in both states are directly related to Carvalho. 

Carvalho was previously the superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools between 2008 and taking the LAUSD job in 2022.

Images outside of Carvalho’s home around 9:10 a.m. Pacific Time showed agents wearing FBI-labeled clothing on the front porch. A neighbor, John Schefer, said the agents were outside the home as early as 6 a.m.

The purpose of the search was unknown. As of Wednesday morning, the underlying affidavit remained under seal, according to the FBI. It’s not clear what wrongdoing, if any, Carvalho is accused of.

A source with direct knowledge said the investigation predates the current administration and is a probe into allegations that Carvalho may have received kickbacks from a business while still superintendent of the Miami school district. The source added that the investigation is not directly tied to LAUSD or Carvalho’s work at the district, and that there is no known culpability or connection to LAUSD.  

In a statement, the LAUSD also confirmed that “law enforcement activity” took place at its downtown L.A. headquarters Wednesday morning.

“The District is cooperating with the investigation and we do not have further information at this time,” the statement said.

Speaking outside LAUSD headquarters, some district employees told CBS LA othat they were asked to leave due to law enforcement activity. They were not informed of the specifics of the situation.

When asked for comment, the office of L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said “LAUSD is an independent body not governed by the City of Los Angeles. The Mayor’s Office has no information about this.”

Carvalho began his tenure as superintendent in early 2022, succeeding Austin Beutner.

He spent the early portion of his role navigating the COVID-19 pandemic before shifting his focus to immigration enforcement-related concerns in recent months.

LAUSD is the nation’s second-largest school district in student enrollment, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

During his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Donald Trump promoted Trump Accounts — new savings accounts for children, which are set to launch this summer.

Babies born from 2025 to 2028 will get a huge perk: The federal government will put $1,000 in their accounts. Major companies are also pledging contributions.

“This is something that’s so special, has taken off and gone through the roof,” Trump said in his speech. “These young people’s accounts could grow to over $100,000 or more by the time they turn 18.”

Trump administration officials say millions of kids are signed up already. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last week that families have applied for around 3 million kids.

What are Trump Accounts?

Trump Accounts are tax-advantaged investment accounts for children under 18. Babies born from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2028, will get $1,000 from the Treasury Department to kick-start their accounts. Only U.S. citizens are eligible.

The program was created under Trump’s One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act, which was signed into law on July 4.

The government said the money will be invested in a suite of low-cost index funds. It said that just the $1,000 deposit could grow to an estimated half a million dollars or more by retirement age.

Who can contribute?

Parents, guardians, friends and companies can all add money to a child’s Trump Account. Kids can receive up to $5,000 per year — a limit that will adjust for inflation starting after 2027. A maximum of $2,500 can come from employers every year.

A growing number of companies, including JPMorgan Chase, Intel and Steak ‘n Shake, have promised to contribute an additional $1,000 for employees’ children born from 2025 to 2028 to match the government’s contribution.

Billionaire philanthropists Michael and Susan Dell also pledged $6.25 billion to supplement the Trump Accounts. The White House said that because of the Dells’ gift, 25 million children ages 10 and under will get an extra $250 apiece. Only children who live in ZIP codes with median household incomes under $150,000 are eligible for the additional money.

And billionaires Ray and Barbara Dalio said they would give $250 apiece to 300,000 kids under 10 in Connecticut — with the same ZIP code income restriction.

How can funds be used?

The money cannot be withdrawn from Trump Accounts until account holders reach 18 years old. At that point, children will get control of their accounts, and they can start using the money for certain expenses like education and first home purchases or to start businesses, without incurring penalties.

The White House says the accounts will be treated like traditional IRAs once the young account holders are adults.

How do I apply for my child?

Parents can begin the process of opening Trump Accounts for their kids by filing IRS Form 4547 with their tax returns or on the official Trump Accounts website: trumpaccounts.gov. The White House said parents and guardians who signed up their children will receive information beginning in May to finish opening the accounts. The program launches July 5.