Shooter Crumbley’s parents to face separate trials
Per CNN:
“Jennifer Crumbley didn’t pull the trigger that day, but she is responsible for those deaths,” Oakland County assistant prosecutor Marc Keast said in opening statements.
In particular, prosecutors accuse the gunman’s parents of disregarding the risks when they bought a gun for their son four days before the shooting, even though he was struggling with his mental health and contemplating violence. They also say the parents did not mention the gun to school officials in a meeting to discuss Ethan’s disturbing drawings just hours before the fatal shooting.
Judge Kwame Rowe presides over the sentencing hearing of Ethan Crumbley, Friday, Dec. 8, 2023, in Pontiac, Mich. Parents of students killed at Michigan's Oxford High School described the anguish of losing their children Friday as the judge considered whether Crumbley, a teenager, will serve a life sentence for a mass shooting in 2021. Crumbley, 17, could be locked up with no chance for parole for killing four fellow students and wounding Others.”
“Despite her knowledge of his deteriorating mental crisis, despite her knowledge of his growing social isolation, despite the fact that it’s illegal for a 15-year-old to walk into a gun store and walk out with a handgun by himself, this gun was gifted,” Keast said.
“Even with all of that,” on the day of the shooting, “Jennifer Crumbley was still given the opportunity to prevent these murders from ever happening,” Keast said. “Instead, she chose to do nothing.”
The parents’ defense attorneys have argued the charges have no legal justification, but appeals courts have upheld them.
“Jennifer Crumbley didn’t pull the trigger that day, but she is responsible for those deaths,” Oakland County assistant prosecutor Marc Keast said in opening statements.
In particular, prosecutors accuse the gunman’s parents of disregarding the risks when they bought a gun for their son four days before the shooting, even though he was struggling with his mental health and contemplating violence. They also say the parents did not mention the gun to school officials in a meeting to discuss Ethan’s disturbing drawings just hours before the fatal shooting.
Judge Kwame Rowe presides over the sentencing hearing of Ethan Crumbley, Friday, Dec. 8, 2023, in Pontiac, Mich. Parents of students killed at Michigan's Oxford High School described the anguish of losing their children Friday as the judge considered whether Crumbley, a teenager, will serve a life sentence for a mass shooting in 2021. Crumbley, 17, could be locked up with no chance for parole for killing four fellow students and wounding Others.”
“Despite her knowledge of his deteriorating mental crisis, despite her knowledge of his growing social isolation, despite the fact that it’s illegal for a 15-year-old to walk into a gun store and walk out with a handgun by himself, this gun was gifted,” Keast said.
“Even with all of that,” on the day of the shooting, “Jennifer Crumbley was still given the opportunity to prevent these murders from ever happening,” Keast said. “Instead, she chose to do nothing.”
The parents’ defense attorneys have argued the charges have no legal justification, but appeals courts have upheld them.
