A 14-year-old boy armed with a semiautomatic rifle fatally shot two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia, on Wednesday. Nine others were wounded in the attack, marking the first mass campus shooting since the start of the new school year.

The suspect, Colt Gray, was quickly taken into custody by law enforcement on the scene. Investigators revealed that Gray had been interviewed by local police and the FBI last year over online threats to commit a school shooting. Despite this, no charges were filed at the time, and the suspect remained under the radar until Wednesday's deadly assault.

The shooting has reignited national calls for stricter gun control measures and a closer examination of law enforcement's handling of potential threats. Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith described the attack as "pure evil" and confirmed that Gray would be charged and tried as an adult.

Those killed in the attack were identified as Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, both 14, and teachers Richard Aspinwall, 39, and Christina Irimie, 53. The nine injured victims are expected to recover, according to local authorities.

The FBI acknowledged in a statement that it had previously investigated online threats from a 13-year-old, who was later identified as Gray. Local law enforcement had interviewed Gray and his father in Jackson County in 2023. At the time, the boy denied making the threats, and his father claimed any firearms in the home were securely stored.

"While we found no probable cause for an arrest, this case highlights the difficulty in predicting future behavior from online activity," the FBI stated.

The incident is poised to reignite debates over access to firearms, especially in light of Gray's use of an AR-style rifle. Advocacy groups and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are likely to revisit discussions on red flag laws, background checks, and the role of law enforcement in responding to threats made by minors.

Winder, a small town northeast of Atlanta, gathered in a city park for a candlelight vigil Wednesday night, where hundreds of grieving residents came together to honor the victims. The shooting has left the community devastated, with questions about how such a tragedy could have been prevented.

"This is not the first time we've seen something like this," said a tearful parent at the vigil. "But it needs to be the last."