Mother of Georgia school shooting suspect is indicted on elder abuse charges

ATLANTA — Marcee Gray, the mother of the suspect in the Apalachee High School shooting, has been indicted in Ben Hill County, accused of taping her then-73-year-old mother to a chair, stealing her phone and damaging her home in November.

Deborah Polhamus, 74, spent almost 24 hours taped to a chair in her Fitzgerald home, an incident report shows. She was found Nov. 4, 2023, by a friend of her daughter, Annie Brown, who lives in Florida. Brown told police she had become concerned about her mother after she was unable to reach her by phone, and had asked her friend, who lives in Fitzgerald, to check on her.

Gray, 43, was indicted Monday on single counts of exploitation and intimidation of a disabled adult or elderly person, false imprisonment, criminal damage to property in the second degree, and theft. If convicted, she faces up to 20 years in jail on the most serious charge of felony elder exploitation.

Gray did not immediately comment on her indictment.

Police allege that Gray taped her mother to a chair, took her mother’s iPhone and damaged a bathroom mirror and back door of her mother’s house around 5 p.m. on Nov. 3. According to an incident report, Gray had become upset after Polhamus refused to accompany her to Barrow County, where Gray intended to confront Colin Gray, her ex-husband.

“Marcee became upset and told Deborah that she was making her go with her because she was going to kill her ex,” the incident report states. “Deborah stated she refused to go and Marcee threw her up against the wall causing a cut on her left wrist. Marcee stated that since Deborah wasn’t going she was going to tie her to a chair and take her phone so she wouldn’t call anyone.”

Marcee Gray was arrested in Barrow County on Nov. 6 in relation to a separate incident, in which she was suspected of possessing methamphetamine, fentanyl and muscle relaxants, and of concealing the identity of her Nissan Rogue. She was also accused of damaging Colin Gray’s work vehicle.

In December, Marcee Gray was charged with, and pleaded guilty to, single counts of using a license plate to conceal identity, criminal damage to property in the second degree and criminal trespass/family violence in Barrow County. She was sentenced to five years in jail, with the first 46 days to be spent in confinement and the remainder on probation. She received credit for the time she had spent in custody from Nov. 6.

Polhamus was left with an injured wrist and bruises on both arms and legs, according to police. The incident report states that Polhamus told police she “did not want to see Marcee being a felon for the rest of her life.”

“Deborah explained that she agreed that Marcee needed to be punished for what she (had) done, but she wanted Marcee to get help for her drug addiction,” the incident report states.

Marcee Gray has a criminal record spanning more than 17 years and four counties, court records show. Her children were living with their father at the time of the Sept. 4 high school shooting in which two students and two teachers were killed and nine others were injured.

Her son Colt Gray, 14, was arrested that day and charged with four counts of murder. Colin Gray, 54, was arrested the day after the shooting and charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter, two counts of second-degree murder and eight counts of cruelty to children.

Colt Gray and Colin Gray both had their first court appearances Sept. 6. Neither sought bail.

In a statement released to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and other news outlets, Marcee Gray apologized to those affected by the shooting. She said her son is “not a monster.”

Brown has spoken publicly to national press outlets about Colt Gray, referring to herself as his aunt. She said Marcee Gray called the school about 30 minutes before the shooting with concerns about her son. Brown called authorities about 90 minutes after the shooting, saying she was worried the shooter was her nephew, she said.

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