A judge sentenced Jennifer Crumbley and her husband on Tuesday to manslaughter charges for failing to prevent their teenage son from killing four of his classmates in the deadliest school shooting in Michigan history. is announced.
Separate jury trials in February and March ended in guilty verdicts, making them the first parents in the country to be convicted of a child's death in a mass shooting.
In Michigan, manslaughter carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, and prosecutors asked in a sentencing memo filed in court last week that the Crumbleys serve at least 10 years. Both men have been in prison for more than two years awaiting trial and asked the court for more lenient sentences.
Prosecutors said Crumbley, 46, is seeking house arrest on his attorney's property rather than a prison sentence. Mr Crumbley said he was wrongly convicted and his sentence should be commensurate with the time already served, and that he feels “absolutely horrified” by what happened. added.
Prosecutors said Mr. Crumbley, 47, had made threatening comments from prison about Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald, who took the unusual decision to bring criminal charges against the shooter's parents. did. Crumbley's prison communication privileges were restricted during the trial, but the reason was not disclosed at the time.
Prosecutors said Mr. Crumbley called him from prison in January and yelled expletives, telling him he was “outraging” and that Mr. McDonald “should be scared.” Mr. Crumbley's attorney, Mariel Lehman, did not respond to a request for comment.
The Crumbleys will be sentenced by Judge Cheryl Matthews of Oakland County Circuit Court in Pontiac, Michigan, who oversaw the trial.
The Crumbleys' son, Ethan, was 15 years old when he carried out the shooting that killed Madisyn Baldwin, 17, at Oxford High School on November 30, 2021. Tate Mire, 16 years old. Justin Schilling, 17 years old. Seven other people were injured. He was sentenced last year to life in prison without parole after pleading guilty to 24 charges, including first-degree murder. He is still eligible to appeal the decision. His parents may also appeal.
At the parents' trial, prosecutors also focused on the parents' failure to remove their son from school for drawing violent pictures on the morning of the shooting. This included a written plea for help.
They also highlighted that Ethan had access to a handgun that Mr. Crumbley had purchased. Crumbley also said he had missed signs that his son was struggling with his mental health, adding that he had taken his son to the shooting range a few days before the shooting.
The parents requested separate trials and Mr. Crumbley chose to testify, but Mr. Crumbley did not take the stand. His parents' lawyer said they could not have foreseen that their son would commit unspeakable violence.
Their case became a lightning rod for parental responsibility issues at a time when gun violence by minors was in the spotlight. In recent months, parents in other states have pleaded guilty to reckless conduct and negligence charges after their children injured or killed others with guns.
But the manslaughter charges against the Crumbleys are unique, and with the help of legal experts, their case could serve as a springboard for other prosecutors seeking to hold parents accountable in the future.
Prosecutors said in their sentencing memo that Crumbley and defense attorney Shannon Smith asked for Crumbley's release “on condition of house arrest,” suggesting that Crumbley may remain in Smith's home. said. Oakland County Guest House.
Prosecutors said the idea was “a slap in the face to the gravity of the tragedy caused by the defendant's gross negligence.”
“If I could go back in time, there are many things I would change,” Crumbley said in her own statement, according to the same memo. She added that she considered her son to be a “quiet, good kid” and that she “never imagined him hurting someone like that.”
Smith declined a request for an interview.