Human Race: Parent on trial

The decision by Georgia prosecutors to criminally charge the father of 14-year-old school shooter Colt Gray signals an emerging trend for addressing school shootings: prosecute the parents, not just the child.

The counts filed Sept. 5 against 54-year-old Colin Gray—second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, and cruelty to children—came less than 36 hours after Colt killed four people with an assault-style rifle at Apalachee High School in Winder. In the first similar case, juries earlier this year convicted James and Jennifer Crumbley of involuntary manslaughter in a 2021 Michigan school shooting by their son.

Authorities said the gun Colt used was a Christmas gift from his father. Dave Velloney, a senior lecturer at Regent University School of Law, says cases charging others with negligence for providing or allowing firearms are likely to continue. Still, it may be difficult to prove a parent knew a child was likely to pose a danger to others.

“The prosecutor must have a lot of evidence. It’s difficult to prove what’s in the mind of a person,” Velloney admits. He says an underlying desire for stricter gun laws may be driving the new approach.

The shooter’s mother, divorced from Gray, reportedly warned the school 30 minutes before shots erupted. If the father was aware of similar problems, it may factor into the prosecutor’s case.

Big Apple probes

Federal agents confiscated the electronic devices of several of New York Mayor Eric Adams’ aides and advisers Sept. 4 as a part of two corruption probes. Although no one was immediately charged—and the mayor was not personally implicated—the raids targeted New York City Police Department Commissioner Edward Caban and other city officials. Caban subsequently announced his resignation on Sept. 12. Federal agents are investigating whether New York bars and nightclubs paid police officials in exchange for lenient treatment by local precincts. The feds are also probing a possible influence-­peddling scheme within City Hall. Adams, a former New York police captain who is up for reelection as mayor this year, is already undergoing scrutiny into whether he accepted illegal donations from Turkish groups with ties to Turkey’s government. —Addie Offereins

The fighting Irish

Irish teacher Enoch Burke on Sept. 2 was jailed for the third time for violating a court order amid a legal dispute centered on transgender pronoun use. Wilson’s Hospital School in Westmeath, Ireland, suspended Burke in 2022 for his refusal to use a student’s preferred pronouns. The school later dismissed the German and history teacher and sought an injunction barring him from its premises. Burke, though, has appealed the dismissal and remains on the school’s payroll as he awaits a final ruling. He has repeatedly been arrested for returning to the school, where he argues he still has a duty to teach. On Sept. 2, Justice Michael Quinn ordered Burke to Mountjoy Prison. He has so far spent over 400 days in jail for violating the court injunction. —Elizabeth Russell

Activists arrested

Amnesty International on Sept. 4 called on the Chinese government to release Zhang Zhan, a Chinese journalist who has likely been detained since late August. Zhang was just released in May from a four-year detention for reporting on the Chinese government’s harassing activities in Wuhan in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Her recent online statements supporting other activists apparently led to her disappearance. The government has also detained dissident artist Gao Zhen for “insulting revolutionary heroes and martyrs,” according to his brother and artistic partner Gao Qiang. The brothers’ provocative sculptures—one portrays Mao Zedong kneeling remorsefully—have critiqued the government since the 1980s. —Todd Vician

Fugitive pastor

A massive two-week manhunt ended in the capture of FBI fugitive and Filipino celebrity pastor Apollo Quiboloy on Sept. 8. Quiboloy founded a religious sect known as the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, a group that claims millions of followers. The self-proclaimed “appointed son of God” and “owner of the universe” surrendered inside his 75-­acre compound in the southern Philippines, where he faces sex and labor trafficking charges. In addition, a U.S. federal grand jury in 2021 indicted Quiboloy on charges related to an alleged sex trafficking operation that coerced girls and young women to have sex with the church’s leader under threats of “eternal damnation.” Quiboloy is believed to be in his mid-70s. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. told reporters his country is not currently considering extradition. —Kim Henderson

Pastor targeted

An unknown shooter fired dozens of rounds at Tennessee pastor Greg Locke’s home on the night of Sept. 3, shortly before Locke and his family pulled into the driveway. Locke, the pastor of Global Vision Bible Church in Mount Juliet, is a vocal critic of President Joe Biden and is known for refusing to halt church services during the COVID-19 pandemic, hosting bonfires to burn items associated with the occult, and speaking about spiritual warfare. Wilson County Sheriff’s deputies found more than 30 shell casings at the scene, and Locke said in a statement on social media that one bullet traveled through his youngest daughter’s bed headboard and lodged in her pillow. One of his children was home at the time of the attack but was not in an area of the home struck by gunfire, he said. —Lauren Canterberry

Prison campaigner

This election season, oddly enough, one of the candidates for Alaska’s lone U.S. House seat will campaign from behind bars. Eric Hafner is serving a 20-year federal prison sentence for making threats to New Jersey judges, attorneys, police officers, and other officials. But he’ll also be on the ballot in Alaska, which doesn’t prohibit convicts from running for office. In the off chance that he’ll outpace incumbent Democrat Mary Peltola or Republican Nick Begich, though, Hafner isn’t exactly a shoo-in for the Alaska seat. The New Jersey resident, serving time in a New York prison, is unlikely to meet Alaska’s residency requirements. Hafner also ran for office in Hawaii in 2016 and Oregon in 2018, both times unsuccessfully. In justification for his long-shot bid, Hafner reasoned to Alaskan radio station KRBD, “You have Donald Trump, who is a convicted felon, who is on the top of the Republican ticket.” —Bekah McCallum