Michigan school shooter Ethan Crumbley’s parents WILL stand trial for involuntary manslaughter, judge rules

The parents of Michigan teenage mass shooter Ethan Crumbley will go on trial after losing an appeal for involuntary manslaughter alleging their son killed four students in November 2021.

Crumbley was 15 when he shot and killed four classmates and injured six other people at the school outside Detroit two years ago.

James and Jennifer Crumbley will face a rare case in which prosecutors attempt to pin responsibility for a school shooting on the perpetrator’s family.

The parents are accused of making a gun accessible to Ethan Crumbley and ignoring his mental health needs.

A state appeals court said in March that the couple could stand trial, and the Michigan Supreme Court upheld that decision in a one-sentence order.

Prosecutors in suburban Detroit only had to show there was probable cause to bring the parents to trial, which is a low threshold at this stage.

The appeals court noted that an Oakland County jury will hear a more comprehensive case from all sides.

The shooter killed Madisyn Baldwin, Tate Myre, Hana St. Juliana and Justin Shilling at Oxford High, about 40 miles north of Detroit, in November 2021. Six students and a teacher were also injured.

Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty to terrorism and murder. A judge said last week that he is eligible for a life sentence without parole.

During a four-day hearing in August, prosecutors showed video footage of the shooting, disturbing passages from the shooter’s diary and testimony from students and local law enforcement.

Prosecutors highlighted chilling statements Crumbley made before the massacre, including an audio recording in which he said he would “have so much fun” shooting his colleagues.

The boy also kept a diary containing a drawing of a girl with a gun to her head with the text: “The first victim must be a beautiful girl with a future, so she can suffer like me.”

“I want America to hear what I did,” Crumbley wrote. “I will cause the largest school shooting in the state. I want to hear the children’s screams as I shoot them.’

Crumbley’s parents, James Robert Crumbley and Jennifer Lynn Crumbley, were also charged and barred from attending their son’s hearing

Ethan Crumbley stands with his attorneys, Paulette Loftin and Amy Hopp during his hearing in Oakland County Circuit Court, August 1, 2023 in Pontiac, Michigan

Madisyn Baldwin, 17, (left) and Hana St Juliana, 14, (right) died during the 2021 shooting at Oxford High School in suburban Detroit

Justin Shilling, 17, (left) and Tate Myre, 16, (right) also died in the senseless shooting

Police say Crumbley’s first victim was freshman Phoebe Arthur (pictured), who was shot in the face but miraculously survived. A total of thirteen people were shot, four of whom were killed

Defense attorneys presented testimony from doctors who saw the potential to eventually correct Crumbley’s mental health problems.

Crumbley, now 17, committed the massacre in November 2021 with a semi-automatic pistol his father bought him as a Christmas present days earlier.

On the day of the shooting, Crumbley and his parents had met with school staff after a teacher was bothered by drawings showing a bloodied body and a gun pointed at the words, “The thoughts won’t stop.” Help me.’

School officials said Crumbley talked his way out of trouble by claiming the drawings were part of plans to make a video game.

After the meeting, Crumbley was allowed to stay at the school, about 40 miles north of Detroit, even though his backpack was not checked for weapons.

He later emerged from a bathroom with a gun and started shooting at fellow students.

Police say Crumbley’s first victim was freshman Phoebe Arthur, who was shot in the face but miraculously survived. A total of thirteen people were shot, four of whom were killed.