Parents of Oxford High School Shooting to Stand Trial

Parents of the Oxford High School shooter lost their appeal, now facing trial for involuntary manslaughter in a rare case linking families to school shootings.

James and Jennifer Crumbley face allegations of enabling Ethan Crumbley’s access to a firearm and neglecting his mental health. The state appeals court ruled in March that they could stand trial, a decision upheld by the Michigan Supreme Court with a concise order.

Prosecutors in suburban Detroit merely needed to establish probable cause for the parents’ trial, a low bar at this stage. The appeals court emphasized that an Oakland County jury will consider a more comprehensive case.

The shooter tragically took the lives of Madisyn Baldwin, Tate Myre, Hana St. Juliana, and Justin Shilling at Oxford High in November 2021, injuring six students and a teacher. Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty to terrorism and murder, with a potential life sentence without parole.

The parents’ defense asserts that the school shooting wasn’t foreseeable, acknowledging poor choices but arguing they shouldn’t be charged with involuntary manslaughter, which carries a maximum 15-year prison term.

Ethan Crumbley’s School Shooting: Unchecked Backpack, Sentencing, and Parental Neglect

The teenager and his parents met school staff on the day of the shooting following concerns over violent drawings, but no one checked his backpack for a weapon, allowing him to remain. The 17-year-old will be sentenced on December 8, potentially facing a prison term eligible for parole in the future.

The Crumbley parents have been in custody since the shooting, unable to post a $500,000 bond, with no contact with their son. Defense lawyers refrained from commenting due to a gag order.

In a similar case in Newport News, Virginia, the mother of a 6-year-old boy who injured a teacher with her gun recently pleaded guilty to child neglect.

In the Michigan case, a psychologist who met with the teen described him as a “feral child” who faced parental neglect. The judge acknowledged an imperfect home life but considered it “not terrible,” with family vacations, pets, and visits.