Photo: Mandi Wright ~ USA TODAY NETWORK
PONTIAC, March 14, 2024 ~ In a moment that solidified precedence, the jury in the trial of James Crumbley, father of the Oxford High School shooter, found him guilty on four counts of involuntary manslaughter.
The decision was reached after nearly 10 hours of deliberation, with a verdict affirming that James Crumbly ignored warning signs of his son’s spiraling mental health, and then notwithstanding purchased for him a SIG Sauer 9mm gun as an early Christmas present just days before the shooting.
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MARCH 14, 2024 ~ Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald led a heartfelt press conference after James Crumbley’s conviction for involuntary manslaughter in connection to the Oxford High School shooting. The historic verdict affirmed that parents can be held accountable for their child’s actions in a mass school shooting, this following a similar conviction for his wife, Jennifer Crumbley for the same counts last month. Parents of the victims joined McDonald, commending law enforcement, and demanding action on gun safety and mental health issues. Calls for bipartisan measures to prevent future tragedies were strong, with an emphasis on the duty to protect children and enact systemic change. Sentencing is set for April 9.
(CONTINUED) The trial was in many ways reflective of the case against his wife, Jennifer Crumbley, who was convicted in February on identical counts. James and Jennifer Crumbley have become the first parents in the U.S. to be found liable for a mass school shooting enacted by their child.
On November 30, 2021, then 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley carried the gun that his father bought for him into Oxford High School and took the lives of 16-year-old Tate Myre, 16-year-old Justin Shilling, 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana, and 17-year-old Madisyn Baldwin. Seven others were injured.
Sentencings for both James and Jennifer Crumbly are set for April 9.
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