OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. — A new jury is set to be selected in the next trial against members of the family charged in the Oxford High School shooting
Prosecutors accuse James Crumbley – father of the Oxford High School shooter – of gross negligence in the deaths of Hana St. Juliana, Justin Shilling, Tate Myre, and Madisyn Baldwin, alleging he bought the gun used that day for his son, failed to secure it, and ignored pleas for help along with other warning signs.
He and his wife, Jennifer Crumbley, chose to leave their son at school the morning of the shooting despite a meeting with school counselors where they were asked to get their son immediate help.
Though originally tried together, a judge granted their attorneys’ motions to separate the trials in November last year. James would later be denied a request to move his trial out of Oakland County.
Both prosecutors and defense attorneys in this case are under a judge’s gag order, meaning neither side can talk about the case at this time—however, attorneys involved with the case had already told our sister station in Detroit that, despite some common denominators, the trial against James will weigh some separate evidence from that against Jennifer.
Former federal prosecutor, Mark Chutkow has also followed the case and is now weighing in, saying the prosecution could become the blueprint for many other cases.
“I think the defense is going to be more careful selecting jurors that are gun owners,” Chutkow explained. “The dad bought the gun. He was a gun owner and knew how to safely store guns. Yet, he didn’t. Evidence showed the lock box was still in factory settings. Cable lock wasn’t used.”
Jennifer Crumbly was found guilty on 4 counts of involuntary manslaughter in February after nearly 2 weeks of testimony. The jury deliberated for more than 10 hours.
Like his wife, James Crumbley faces 4 counts of involuntary manslaughter.
We will continue to monitor progress in this trial – updates can also be found on air or in the FOX 17 App.
