KINGSTON, Tennessee — A Roane County husband and wife accused in the killing of two of their adoptive children face a court hearing Tuesday that could resolve their cases.
Michael, 67, and Shirley Gray, 64, face the threat of the death penalty in one murder case in Roane County Criminal Court.
In Roane County, they're accused in the killing of adoptive daughter Heather "Sophie" Gray, who was found buried in the yard of their Roane County home in May 2020. Authorities think she died from starvation and abuse at the Gray home in early 2017.
In Knox County, the couple is separately accused in the killing of their adoptive son Jonathan Gray, who was found buried in the yard of a Halls home in May 2020. Authorities think the boy also died from abuse and had been dead since 2015 or 2016.
Ninth Judicial District Attorney General Russell Johnson filed notice in Roane County after the Grays were indicted there that he intended to seek their execution if they were convicted of first-degree murder. There's been little legal movement in either that case or the Knox County case in recent years.
The Grays are set to appear 9 a.m. Tuesday before Judge Jeff Wicks in Roane County Criminal Court in Kingston. The couple has been in custody since the bones of their adoptive children were found in 2020.
According to Johnson, the defendants agreed to let Wicks handle legal matters from both counties, Roane and Knox. The couple is supposed to be moved from Knox to Roane County for Tuesday's court appearance.
ADOPTION HORROR STORY
The Grays had adopted five children by the time Sophie's remains were found in the Roane County yard, records show. Authorities have suggested they pocketed money they got for the adoptive childrens' care while neglecting all or most of them.
One of the children told investigators he'd been kept in the lower level of the Halls home for several years until his family moved to Roane County.
"He described being confined for lengthy periods of time in a downstairs room as well as a cage. (He) described being forced to defecate in a bucket during this period of confinement and having his food intake severely limited," a 2020 search warrant affidavit obtained by WBIR states.
Several of his adoptive siblings faced the same treatment, the affidavit states.
In the Grays' Roane County home, some of the children were confined in an unfinished basement, records state.
Jonathan and Sophie were subjected to repeated abuse and harsh living conditions, authorities allege. Jonathan fell sick in the Halls home, after which he simply "disappeared," the affidavit states.
The family is believed first to have lived in a home on Cedarbreeze Road in the Halls area with the Grays' natural son, Michael Anthony Gray Jr. The son owned the home, records show.
While they lived there, Jonathan died. He was buried in the Halls yard, but no one said anything about it for years.
The Grays then moved in 2016 to the Ten Mile community of Roane County with the four surviving adoptive children. Sophie died months later.
On May 22, 2020, a neighbor found one of the adoptive children, age 11, wandering in the area. That triggered a police investigation during which Michael Gray Sr. admitted they'd find Sophie's remains on his Roane County property.
Investigators dug up the girl's remains, and as the investigation continued police were led to check out the Halls home owned by Gray Jr. On May 24, 2020, they found what proved to be Jonathan's skeletal remains.
Michael Gray Jr., 43, owned the Cedarbreeze house for about 11 years, records show. After Jonathan's remains were found in the yard, he was indicted with several counts in Knox County, including felony murder. Ownership of the home also changed hands.
His case is separate from that of his parents. He's not charged in Roane County.
Gray Jr. faces a court hearing Friday in Knox County Criminal Court. He's not in custody, records show.
