Michigan School Shooter’s Parents Each Get 10 to 15 Years In Landmark Case
In a first for the U.S., the parents of a mass school shooter were both convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 10 to 15 years in prison.
Jennifer and James Crumbley were sentenced in a Michigan courtroom on Tuesday after their son, Ethan, went on a deadly rampage Oxford High School in Michigan, on Nov. 30, 2021.
Ethan is currently serving a life sentence without the change of parole for the murder of classmates: Tate Myre, 16; Hana St. Juliana, 14; Madisyn Baldwin, 17, and Justin Shilling, 17. The victim’s families spoke at the trial and linked the parent’s to their son’s devastating actions.
“You created all of this,” said Madisyn Baldwin’s mother as she broke down on the stand. “You failed as parents. The punishment that you face will never be enough.”
“Mrs. Crumbley, you glorified the use and possession of these weapons,” Matthews added.
CNN’s Jean Casarez spoke about the impact of the landmark verdict and noted, “This is the first time in this country ever that we have not only had charges and a conviction of homicide against the parents of a school shooter, but now a sentencing for the parents of a school shooter who did not pull the trigger of a gun. You know, the prosecution argued today before the judge for sentencing, that the continued gross negligence that the smallest of decisions could have changed the course of this, and they did nothing in regard to that.”
Casarez also explained that the judge gave the parents the maximum sentence sought by the prosecution and told her court that the need for greater deterrence in society factored in greatly to her decision, which she said kept her up at night.
Watch the clip above via CNN.
