95.3 / 88.5 FM Grand Rapids and 95.3 FM Muskegon
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Crumbley parents ask MI Supreme Court to toss charges related to Oxford school shootings

Jennifer Crumbley, left, and James Crumbley, right, the parents of Ethan Crumbley, a teenager accused of killing four students in a shooting at Oxford High School, appear in court for a preliminary examination on involuntary manslaughter charges in Rochester Hills, Mich. on Feb. 8, 2022. The Crumbleys return to court, Tuesday, March 22, for a pretrial hearing on involuntary manslaughter charges.
(AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
/
(AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
Jennifer Crumbley, left, and James Crumbley, right, the parents of Ethan Crumbley, a teenager accused of killing four students in a shooting at Oxford High School, appear in court for a preliminary examination on involuntary manslaughter charges in Rochester Hills, Mich. on Feb. 8, 2022.

The briefs argued that taking the case to trial would set a dangerous precedent

The parents of the Oxford High School shooter have asked the Michigan Supreme Court to dismiss manslaughter charges filed against them. That’s after two lower courts rejected the legal efforts filed by James and Jennifer Crumbley. The parents say they had no way of knowing their son would carry out a mass shooting. James Crumbley’s filing said “…one cannot predict the unimaginable.”

Also, the briefs argued that taking the case to trial would set a dangerous precedent: “Of course, for parents, this interpretation should be particularly troubling, given that the line-crossing is not dependent on the act of the parent, but of the teenager.”

The Oakland County Prosecutor says the parents could have stopped the crime before it happened by securing the gun, which was a birthday gift to their son, who was 15 at the time of the shooting.

The Crumbleys’ son has already pleaded guilty to 24 charges including murder and terrorism and is awaiting sentencing. The prosecutor is seeking a sentence of life with no chance for parole.

Related Content