Jennifer and James Crumbley, parents of Ethan Crumbley, the teenager responsible for a mass shooting at a Michigan school, face involuntary manslaughter charges.

Who are Jennifer and James Crumbley?

James and Jennifer Crumbley (x/@monaheart1229)

Jennifer and James Crumbley, the parents of Ethan Crumbley, who perpetrated a mass shooting at Oxford High School in Michigan, are set to go on trial facing involuntary manslaughter charges—the first parents charged in a mass U.S. school shooting. The trial for Jennifer Crumbley is expected to commence this week, while James Crumbley will face a separate trial in March.

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Prosecutors allege that the Crumbleys, despite being unaware of their son’s specific plans, provided him access to a gun, neglected his mental health needs, and failed to intervene when confronted with violent drawings at school on the day of the attack. The couple, now in their 40s, has been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter each, carrying a potential maximum prison sentence of 15 years.

Days before the November 30, 2021, shooting, James Crumbley, 47, purchased a semi-automatic handgun with 15-year-old Ethan at his side, describing it as “my new beauty.” Jennifer, 45, later shared an Instagram post about a “mom and son day” at a shooting range. A day before the attack, the school informed Jennifer that Ethan was looking at ammunition on his phone, to which she responded, “I’m not mad. You have to learn not to get caught.”

The tragedy unfolded when Ethan, armed with a gun from home, killed four students and injured seven others before surrendering to police. At a court hearing in December, he received a life sentence without parole after pleading guilty to murder, terrorism, and other charges. The parents’ defense argues that the tragedy was unforeseeable, emphasizing the difficulty of predicting such events.

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As the trial proceeds, this case raises questions about assigning responsibility to parents in the aftermath of school shootings and the broader societal debate around gun access and mental health awareness.