Current:Home > MyJames and Jennifer Crumbley, parents of Michigan shooter, to be sentenced today -Stellar Wealth Sphere
James and Jennifer Crumbley, parents of Michigan shooter, to be sentenced today
View
Date:2025-04-19 16:31:32
Jennifer and James Crumbley, the first parents of a mass school shooter in the U.S. to be convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the shooting, are set to be sentenced on Tuesday.
Prosecutors asked that each parent be given 10 to 15 years in prison after separate juries found them each guilty of four counts of involuntary manslaughter earlier this year. Their son, Ethan, is serving a life sentence for the murders of four of his classmates at Oxford High School in Oxford, Michigan, on Nov. 30, 2021, when he was 15 years old.
The parents have shown no remorse for their actions, prosecutors told Judge Cheryl Matthews in a sentencing memo. They told the juries that the Crumbleys bought their son the gun he used to kill Tate Myre, 16; Hana St. Juliana, 14; Madisyn Baldwin, 17, and Justin Shilling, 17, and ignored troubling signs about the teen's mental health.
Loved ones of the victims are expected to read victim impact statements in court on Tuesday.
Legal experts have said the case, which drew national attention, could impact how society views parents' culpability when their children access guns and cause harm with them. Whether the outcome encourages prosecutors to bring future charges against parents remains to be seen.
Why were the Crumbleys culpable in their son's crimes?
The Crumbleys' son went on a rampage in the halls of Oxford High School hours after his parents were called to the school by counselors to discuss concerns over disturbing drawings he had done on a math assignment. Prosecutors said they didn't tell school officials that their son had access to guns in the home and left him at school that day.
James Crumbley purchased the gun used in the shooting, and in a post on social media Jennifer Crumbley said it was a Christmas present for the boy. The prosecution said the parents could have prevented the shooting if they had taken ordinary care to secure the gun and taken action when it was clear their son was having severe mental health issues.
The prosecution cited messages the teen sent months before the shooting to his mom that said he saw a "demon" in their house and that clothes were flying around. He also texted a friend that he had "paranoia" and was hearing voices. In a journal, the shooter wrote: "I have zero HELP for my mental problems and it's causing me to shoot up" the school.
The Crumbleys also attempted to flee from law enforcement when it became clear they would face charges, prosecutors said.
Defense attorneys said the parents never foresaw their son's actions. Jennifer Crumbley portrayed herself as an attentive mother when she took the stand in her own defense, and James Crumbley's lawyer said the gun didn't really belong to the son, and the father properly secured the gun and didn't allow his son to use it unsupervised. In an interview with the Detroit Free Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, the jury foreman in James Crumbley's trial said the storage of the gun was the key issue that drove him to convict.
Parents asked for house arrest, time served
James Crumbley has asked to be sentenced to time already served since his arrest in December 2021, according to the prosecutors' sentencing memo, while Jennifer Crumbley hoped to serve out a sentence on house arrest while living in her lawyer's guest house.
Prosecutors rejected the requests in the memo to the judge, saying neither had shown remorse for their roles in the deaths of four children. James Crumbley also allegedly made threats against Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald in a jail phone conversation, Keast said, showing his "chilling lack of remorse."
"Such a proposed sentence is a slap in the face to the severity of tragedy caused by (Jennifer Crumbley's) gross negligence, the victims and their families," Assistant Oakland County Prosecutor Marc Keast wrote of the mother's request in a sentencing memo.
Each involuntary manslaughter count carries up to 15 years in prison, though typically such sentences are handed down concurrently, not consecutively. The judge also has the discretion to go above or below the state advisory guidelines, which recommended a sentencing range of 43 to 86 months − or a maximum of about seven years. The state guideline is advisory, based on post-conviction interviews and facts of the case.
veryGood! (592)
Related
- Hackers hit Rhode Island benefits system in major cyberattack. Personal data could be released soon
- A global day of protests draws thousands in London and other cities in pro-Palestinian marches
- Dog rescued after surviving 60-foot fall from Michigan cliff and spending night alone on Lake Superior shoreline
- Eagles WR A.J. Brown out of wild-card game vs. Buccaneers due to knee injury
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Browns QB Joe Flacco unravels in NFL playoff rout as Texans return two interceptions for TDs
- In Ecuador, the global reach of Mexico’s warring drug cartels fuels a national crisis
- Asia Cup holds moment’s silence for Israel-Gaza war victims ahead of Palestinian team’s game
- Tarte Shape Tape Concealer Sells Once Every 4 Seconds: Get 50% Off Before It's Gone
- A Texas woman was driven off her land by a racist mob in 1939. More than eight decades later, she owns it again.
Ranking
- Friday the 13th luck? 13 past Mega Millions jackpot wins in December. See top 10 lottery prizes
- Elementary school teacher fired over side gig as online sex coach in Austria
- A man is charged in a 2013 home invasion slaying and assault in suburban Philadelphia
- A global day of protests draws thousands in London and other cities in pro-Palestinian marches
- Hackers hit Rhode Island benefits system in major cyberattack. Personal data could be released soon
- Indian Ocean island nation of Comoros votes for president in Africa’s first election of 2024
- Indian Ocean island nation of Comoros votes for president in Africa’s first election of 2024
- CVS closing dozens of pharmacies inside Target stores
Recommendation
Trump wants to turn the clock on daylight saving time
Margaritaville license plates, Jimmy Buffett highway proposed to honor late Florida singer
From Best Buy to sex videos, a now-fired university chancellor shares the backstory
A global day of protests draws thousands in London and other cities in pro-Palestinian marches
Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
Margaritaville license plates, Jimmy Buffett highway proposed to honor late Florida singer
The Latest Cafecore Trend Brings Major Coffeeshop Vibes Into Your Home
Two Navy SEALs are missing after Thursday night mission off coast of Somalia