Dec 03, 2021

Teen suspect's parents charged in Michigan school shooting

Posted Dec 03, 2021 5:45 PM
Ethan Crumbley has been charged as an adult with two dozen crimes, including murder, attempted murder and terrorism. -photo Oakland Co. Sheriff
Ethan Crumbley has been charged as an adult with two dozen crimes, including murder, attempted murder and terrorism. -photo Oakland Co. Sheriff

OXFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — A prosecutor filed involuntary manslaughter charges Friday against the parents of a 15-year-old accused of killing four students and wounding seven other people at a Michigan High School.

Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald during Friday's announcement-image courtesy Oakland Co. District Attorney's office
Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald during Friday's announcement-image courtesy Oakland Co. District Attorney's office

James and Jennifer Crumbley were charged with four counts each of involuntary manslaughter.

Authorities have said Ethan Crumbley opened fire shortly before 1 p.m. Tuesday at Oxford High School, roughly 30 miles (50 kilometers) north of Detroit. Seven students and a teacher were shot before Crumbley surrendered to sheriff’s deputies.

Three of the students died Tuesday. The fourth died Wednesday at a hospital.

First responders on the scene of the school shooting photo courtesy WWJT
First responders on the scene of the school shooting photo courtesy WWJT

The semi-automatic gun used in the shooting was purchased legally by Crumbley’s father last week, according to investigators, and given to the boy.

“The parents were the only individuals in the position to know the access to weapons,” Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald said Thursday. The gun “seems to have been just freely available to that individual.”

She said then that the parents’ actions went “far beyond negligence.”

During a Friday news conference, McDonald said the parents were summoned a few hours before the shooting after a teacher found a drawing of a gun, a person bleeding and the words “help me.”

 Crumbley was returned to his classroom and later emerged from a bathroom, firing a gun at students. He’s charged with murder and other other charges.