Judge Julie Nicholson: "The deaths of the four victims could have been avoided."
Jennifer and James Crumbley will stand trial for involuntary manslaughter in the Oxford High shooting involving their son Ethan Crumbley, a Rochester Hills judge decided Thursday.
Judge Julie Nicholson of 52-3 District Court ruled that the mass shooting Nov. 30 could have been avoided had the Crumbleys acted more responsibly as parents.
“There was extensive testimony that Ethan Crumbley was a troubled young man,” Nicholson said after a preliminary examination to determine if there was enough evidence to proceed to trial in Oakland County Circuit Court. “But they purchased a gun, which he believed was his."
"The court finds that the deaths of the four victims could have been avoided if James and Jennifer Crumbley exercised ordinary care and diligence in the care of their son."
She went on to say that Ethan presented a danger to community which "was apparent to an ordinary mind."
She then denied a bond request for both parents, being held in the Oakland County Jail.
Ethan Crumbley is charged in the school shooting that resulted in four deaths and seven wounded.
Earlier in the day, the prosecution introduced evidence from Ethan Crumbley's journal in which he wrote:
"I have fully mentally lost it after years of fighting my dark side. My parents won't listen to me about help or a therapist."
In closing arguments, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said of the Crumbleys and the four students who died:
"If they had exercised reasonable care for their son, Hana, Tate, Madison, and Justin would still be here. It was a direct result of this gross negligence.”
Defense attorney Shannon Smith argued that the parents had no idea their son would commit such an act, and therefore should not face criminal charges.
“But at the end of the day, the law doesn't care about what kind of parents they were,” she said. “It cares whether we knew their son was going to commit murder. James and Jennifer Crumbley did not know that a murder would be committed. Jennifer and James would have been horrified.”
Related today:
'The Shooting Is Tomorrow, I Have Access to the Gun And Ammo' -- Ethan Crumbley's Journal
