Michigan School Shooter’s Mother Claims She Was Not Responsible for Firearms, Reports Reuters

By Brad Brooks

The mother of a Michigan boy who fatally shot four high school classmates in 2021 testified in her own defense recently, asserting that she was not accountable for either purchasing or properly storing the firearm used in the incident.

Jennifer Crumbley, aged 45, took the stand in what is considered a landmark trial aimed at a parent of a school shooter. She and her husband, James Crumbley, who is set to face a separate trial in March, are both facing charges of involuntary manslaughter.

Their son, Ethan, who was 15 during the shooting at Oxford High School near Detroit, pleaded guilty in 2022 to multiple charges, including four counts of first-degree murder, and received a life sentence without the possibility of parole in December.

Prosecutors contend that Jennifer and James Crumbley were aware their son was experiencing significant mental health struggles and posed a threat to others, yet they allowed him access to firearms, including the 9mm pistol he used in the attack.

When her lawyer inquired about who was responsible for securely storing firearms at home, Jennifer responded, “My husband is.” She explained that she felt uncomfortable with that responsibility and allowed her husband to manage it instead.

Jennifer stated that James Crumbley kept the 9mm pistol secured in a case with a cable lock, with the key hidden inside one of several decorative beer steins in their home. She admitted she did not know where the key was located.

She testified that while her son had been anxious about college and his future, she never believed his issues warranted a visit to a psychiatrist.

Prosecutors are scheduled to cross-examine Jennifer Crumbley soon.

Prosecutors, as the trial commenced, argued that both Jennifer and James Crumbley failed to take several “tragically small and easy” precautions that could have potentially prevented the shooting. They highlighted that the firearms in the home were not stored securely and the parents ignored clear signs of their son’s mental health struggles.

Experts in gun safety hope the Crumbley trials will prompt parents nationwide to improve the security of firearms in their homes, as research indicates that roughly 75% of school shooters obtained the weapons they used from their own homes.

Prosecutors assert that James Crumbley purchased the 9mm handgun used in the attack just four days prior to the shooting on November 30, 2021.

On the day of the shooting, a teacher found drawings by Ethan that depicted a handgun, a bullet, and a figure bleeding next to phrases like “Blood everywhere,” “My life is useless,” and “The thoughts won’t stop – help me.”

The Crumbleys were summoned to the school that morning, where they were informed that Ethan required counseling and needed to be taken home. However, prosecutors say the parents resisted this suggestion and failed to search his backpack or inquire about the gun.

In her testimony, Jennifer disputed this narrative, claiming that she, her husband, and the school staff mutually agreed that Ethan could stay in school that day, insisting that at no moment did she view him as a risk to other students.

She described the meeting as “nonchalant” and brief, asserting that school personnel indicated they did not consider her son a threat.

Following this meeting, Ethan returned to class, and later emerged from a bathroom with the gun, opening fire as prosecutors allege.