James and Jennifer Crumbley were shown at the video arrangement of their son, Ethan Crumbley, in Rochester Hills, Mich., on Wednesday. On Friday, a prosecutor filed involuntary manslaughter charges against the Crumbleys, whose 15-year-old son allegedly killed four students at a Michigan high school.
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James and Jennifer Crumbley were shown at the video arrangement of their son, Ethan Crumbley, in Rochester Hills, Mich., on Wednesday. On Friday, a prosecutor filed involuntary manslaughter charges against the Crumbleys, whose 15-year-old son allegedly killed four students at a Michigan high school.
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PONTIAC, Mich. – The parents of a teenager accused of killing four students in a shooting at a Michigan high school were arrested early Saturday, hours after a prosecutor filed a charge of involuntary manslaughter. vows against them, according to the sheriff’s office.
James and Jennifer Crumbley were arrested in Detroit, Oakland County Sheriff Michael McCabe said in a statement. A vehicle attached to the couple was identified by a business owner in Detroit late Friday.
Authorities searched for the Debris since Friday afternoon. Police Chief Mike Bouchard said their attorney, Shannon Smith, had agreed to make arrests if charges were filed but could not be reached.
However, Smith said the Crumbleys were not on the run and had left town earlier in the week “for their own safety.”
“They’re going back to the pre-arranged area,” Smith told the Associated Press.
Ethan Crumbley, 15 years old, as an adult charged with murder, terrorism and other crimes. Officials said he pulled a gun at Oxford High School on Tuesday, shoot four people and wounded seven others.
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald filed an involuntary manslaughter charge earlier Friday against the parents, saying they did not intervene on the day of the tragedy despite facing a drawing and The chilling message – “blood everywhere” – was found on the boy’s desk.
James and Jennifer Crumbley committed “serious” acts, from buying a gun on Black Friday and getting Ethan Crumbley ready to fight his expulsion when they were summoned hours before the shooting, Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald said.
“I hope parents and everyone have the humanity to step in and avert a potential tragedy,” she said. “The conclusion I draw is that there is absolute reason to believe that this individual is dangerous and disturbed.”
By mid-afternoon, authorities said they were looking for the couple. Police Chief Mike Bouchard said their attorney, Smith, had agreed to make arrests if charges were filed but could not be reached.
However, Smith said the Crumbleys were not on the run and had left town earlier in the week “for their own safety.”
US sheriffs on Friday night announced rewards of up to $10,000 for each information leading to the Crumbleys’ arrest.
Earlier, prosecutors gave the most accurate account to date of the events leading up to the shooting, three days after four students were killed and others injured at Oxford High School. Detroit is about 30 miles north.
Ethan Crumbley, 15, emerged from the bathroom with a gun and shot students in the hallway, investigators said.
Under Michigan law, an involuntary manslaughter charge against a parent may be prosecuted if authorities believe someone contributed to a situation that is more likely to result in harm or death.
Parents in the United States are rarely charged with school shootings involving their children, even when most minors take firearms from the home of a parent or relative, according to experts. family.
McDonald’s said school officials were concerned about Crumbley on Monday, the day before the shooting, when a teacher saw him searching for ammunition on his phone.
Jennifer Crumbley was contacted and later told her son in a text message: “Lol. I’m not mad at him. You have to learn not to get caught,” according to prosecutors.
On Tuesday, a teacher found a notepad on Ethan’s desk and took a photo. It was a drawing of a gun pointed at the words, “Thoughts won’t stop. Help me,” McDonald said.
There was also a drawing of a bullet, she said, with the words above it: “Blood everywhere.”
Between the gun and the bullets was a man who appeared to have been shot twice and was bleeding. He also wrote, “My life is useless” and “The world is dead,” according to the prosecutor.
The school promptly met with Ethan and his parents, who were asked to offer him counseling within 48 hours, McDonald said.
The Crumbleys did not ask their son about the gun or check his backpack and were “resistance to the idea of their son leaving school at the time,” McDonald said.
Instead, the teen returned to the classroom and the ensuing shooting occurred.
The prosecutor said: “The notion that a parent can read those words and also know that their son had access to a deadly weapon they gave him is unconscionable – that is crime. .
Jennifer Crumbley texted her son after the shooting, saying, “Ethan, don’t do that,” McDonald said.
James Crumbley called 911 to say a gun was lost in their home and that Ethan might be the shooter. McDonald said the gun was stored in an unlocked drawer in the parent’s bedroom.
Ethan went with his father to buy a gun on November 26 and posted photos of the gun on social media, saying, “I just got a new look today,” McDonald said.
Over the extended Thanksgiving weekend, Jennifer Crumbley wrote on social media that it was “a mother and son’s day to try out his new Christmas present,” prosecutors said.
When asked at a news conference if the father could be charged with buying a gun for his son, McDonald said that would be a federal decision.
In one video messages with the community on Thursday, the head of Oxford Community School said the high school looked like a “war zone” and would not be ready for weeks. Superintendent Tim Throne continually commends students and staff on how they respond to violence.
He also noted the meeting of Crumbley, parents and school staff. Throne did not provide details but summed it up by saying, “No discipline is guaranteed.”
McDonald was asked about the decision to keep Crumbley at the school.
“Of course, he shouldn’t be back in that class. … I believe it’s a common position. I wouldn’t punish or attack, but yes,” she said.
When asked if school officials were likely to be charged, McDonald said: “The investigation is ongoing.”
