OXFORD, Mich. — Both parents of the teenager who shot and killed four classmates at Oxford High School in 2021 have now been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter.
A 12-person jury returned a unanimous verdict on Thursday, convicting the shooter’s father, 47-year-old James Crumbley, on four counts of involuntary manslaughter. Killed in the shooting were 17-year-old Madisyn Baldwin, 16-year-old Tate Myre, 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana, and 17-year-old Justin Shilling.
Crumbley’s wife, Jennifer Crumbley, was also found guilty last month on the same charges, making them the first parents of a mass shooter to be held criminally responsible for their child’s actions. Both Crumbleys face up to 15 years in prison for each count and will be sentenced in April.
Prosecutors maintained throughout James Crumbley’s trial that he should have reasonably foreseen that his son was troubled and may resort to violence, NBC News reports. Prosecutors said Crumbley purchased the gun used in the shooting for his son during a time when he was struggling emotionally after his best friend moved away.
“These were egregious facts in this case. These parents could have prevented this tragedy. It was foreseeable,” said Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald. “With just the smallest of efforts, they could have prevented this shooting and saved these kids’ lives.”
Prosecutors Focus on Safe Gun Storage
Oxford High School staff testified that the Crumbleys were called to the school the morning of the shooting about a drawing their son made depicting a gun and a person shot. The Crumbleys did not tell school officials that their son had access to a weapon, which was in his backpack. He would go on to carry out the shooting several hours later after his parents refused to take him home.
“How many times does this kid have to say it? He writes the words ‘Help me’ on a piece of paper,” McDonald said during the trial. “And his parent, James Crumbley, is called to the school and what does he say? He says, ‘We gotta go to work.'”
During her trial, Jennifer Crumbley told jurors it was her husband’s job to keep track of the gun. James Crumbley told investigators that he hid the handgun in an armoire and put the ammunition underneath his jeans in another drawer.
Prosecutors stressed to jurors that although Michigan’s safe gun storage law only went into effect this year, it was Crumbley’s legal duty as a parent to prevent his minor child from “unreasonable risk to harm others.” During closing arguments, McDonald told jurors that parents can be responsible gun owners no matter if their child is planning a mass shooting.
“This case is not a statement about guns. It’s not a statement about parental responsibility. It’s not a case about kids doing kid things,” she said. “James Crumbley is not on trial for what his son did. James Crumbley is on trial for what he did and what he didn’t do.”
McDonald called U.S. gun violence a “public health crisis.” Guns became the leading cause of death for children in 2020. Last month, the U.S. Department of Education released a new resource for school administrators to communicate with parents and families about the importance of safe firearm storage, noting nearly 20% of childhood deaths are caused by firearms and that many deaths can be prevented through safe storage of firearms.
“We will not be able to address it until we start treating it like a public health crisis,” McDonald said. “And yes, access to guns is a critical piece of that. But it’s not the only piece.”
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said after the verdict that the Crumbleys showed “tragic inaction” leading up to the shooting, including improper gun storage.
“If [your] very first thought when you hear about an active shooter at your child’s school isn’t, ‘Is he OK?’ but to worry if your son is the shooter or to rush home to find out if the gun you irresponsibly left unsecure is still there, then you should’ve done something in advance,” he said.
Craig Shilling, father of victim Justin Shilling, said the verdict was “monumental” and called for society to set an example for children, according to CBS News.
“We can change, we can push forward, we can get through the difficulties of life together if we try. We can’t turn our heads to these kinds of problems that we face today. It’s so important to emphasize the necessity of going after and holding those accountable for their insufficiencies,” he said. “We have to move forward. We’ve put much behind us but there’s still so much there in front of us.”
