A 15-year-old named Ethan Robert Crumbley entered Oxford High School on November 30, 2021, and used a 9mm semi-automatic handgun to murder four pupils and wound seven others, including a teacher. Prosecutors in Michigan eventually brought adult charges against him, nailing him with 24 felonies, including murder and terrorism causing death. In December 2023, after eleven months of trial, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of release plus twenty-four years.
Parents Charged
Nonetheless, the resolution did not halt the endeavors of law enforcement to bring justice to the relatives of the victims. The parents of the defendant were charged with involuntary manslaughter a few days following the school shooting because they were negligent in securing the weapon that their son used in the tragic incident. U.S. Marshalls apprehended the pair in Detroit following a short manhunt. They remain in pretrial jail on a half-million-dollar cash bond after submitting unsuccessful motions to decrease their bail.
Jurors began deliberating for Jennifer Crumbley’s case on January 23, while James Crumbley’s trial is scheduled to commence on March 5. Her guilt as charged was recently found by the panel.
Jury Finds School Shooter’s Mother Guilty
A jury found Mrs. Crumbley guilty on four charges of involuntary manslaughter—one for each of the Oxford High students her son murdered—on February 6, according to NPR. This case “is believed to be the first time” a parent has been tried for manslaughter in relation to a mass shooting perpetrated by their child, as pointed out by the media outlet.
Officials said Mrs. Crumbley showed “little emotion” when she and her counsel entered the courtroom. Onlookers at the courtroom proceedings noted that she lowered her head when the jury foreman announced the verdicts.
A number of relatives of the victims were present for the hearing. They embraced the prosecutors, shook their hands, and extended their hands to them.
Prosecutors didn’t accuse Mrs. Crumbley of knowing that her son planned the 2021 shooting. Instead, they alleged that she and her husband failed to secure the handgun he used and ignored his mental health needs. For instance, prosecutors said the two parents ignored their son’s request to see a doctor after witnessing a demon throwing dishes around their house.
After school officials confronted him about some violent drawings they found in his hands, prosecutors said both of his parents refused to take him home the day of the attack.
The components of involuntary manslaughter are “well-defined […] definite and plain: gross negligence causing death,” according to Joseph Shada, an assistant prosecutor for Oakland County, in court documents.
On April 9, the court will hear Crumbley’s sentencing case, in which she may face a maximum of fifteen years in prison.
