Court considers if parents of school shooter can be charged

Public Radio 90, WNMU | By Associated Press

Published March 8, 2023 at 8:56 AM EST

Michigan Court of Appeals Judge Michael Riordan, speaks with attorney Shannon Smith, for Jennifer Crumbley, during a hearing of James and Jennifer Crumbley by the Michigan Court of Appeals, on whether there is enough evidence for the Crumbleys to stand trial for involuntary manslaughter in the Oxford High School shooting by their son Ethan, in Detroit, on Tuesday, March 7, 2023. (Daniel Mears/Detroit News via AP, Pool)

DETROIT, MI (AP)— The Michigan Court of Appeals has heard arguments about whether the parents of a teen shooter can be charged in the deaths of four students.

Prosecutors defended their decision to charge James and Jennifer Crumbley with involuntary manslaughter. They say Ethan Crumbley's disturbing drawings and his fascination with guns should have been a wake-up call for his parents.

Four students were killed at Oxford High School in 2021. Ethan Crumbley has pleaded guilty to murder.

Lawyers for his parents say it wasn't foreseeable that the boy would commit a mass shooting at his school.

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