On Tuesday, Nov 30th the students of Oxford High School experienced an incident they will have nightmares about for the rest of their lives as the school was experiencing an attack on it’s staff and students.The suspect Ethan Crumbley, a 15 year old student, attacked the school with his father’s firearm, killing four and injuring seven others. 

   Local authorities were shocked after receiving over 100 phone calls from terrified students and staff reporting an active shooter in the school. According to CNN, close to 60 ambulances responded to the incident. The police arrested and detained the suspect within 2-3 minutes of arriving and the suspect did not resist the arrest according to the Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard. Crumbley was brought to Oakland County Children’s Village, however when it was announced that the state would be trying him as an adult he was transferred to Oakland County Jail. Officials have confirmed that the suspect is currently under suicide watch and is being checked on every 15 minutes. After the school was cleared, the students were transported to a store to reunite with their families. Bouchard reported that there were no rumors of the shooting before it took place. Officials believe that Crumbley acted alone and that the shooting was premeditated. 

   President Biden immediately addressed the situation while in Minnesota. “My heart goes out to the families enduring the unimaginable grief of losing a loved one.”

   The police conducted an investigation after the students and staff had been evacuated. The police determined and released that at least 12 rounds were fired and two 15-round magazines were found at the scene. The police also recovered shell casings from the scene which lead them to believe that about 15-20 shots were fired. Authorities executed a search warrant at the suspect’s home during which they seized a phone and a few other items. The police recovered a journal from the suspect’s backpack where the suspect showed his desire to “shoot up the school”. 

   According to CNN, Ethan Crumbley is facing charges of: 

• four counts of 1st degree murder
• seven counts of assault with intent to murder
• 12 counts possession of a firearm during the commision of a firearm

   The Judge scheduled a probable cause hearing for Dec. 13, 2021 which has now been postponed until January 7, 2021. and a preliminary hearing for Dec. 20, 2021, which could be postponed as well. Crumbley’s lawyer entered a plea of not guilty on behalf of his client. At Crumbley’s arraignment Lt. Tim Willis said that two separate videos recovered from the suspected shooter’s phone showed him talking about shooting and killing students the next day at Oxford High School. The probable cause  hearing was postponed as the prosecutors require more time to gather information about the shooting to present during the hearing. 

   The suspect’s parents are being charged with multiple counts of involuntary manslaughter after being caught by police at an empty warehouse, the suspect’s parents have both pleaded not-guilty. CNN reported, the suspect’s parents bought him the gun used in the shooting four days prior to the incident. The suspect posted photos of his new gun on social media and the suspect’s mother also made a post that said “mom and son day testing out his new Christmas present.” Two days after the mothers post a teacher saw the suspect searching online for ammunition and immediately reported this to the school officials. The school then attempted to contact the parents however there was no response. The suspect’s mother later that day texted her son, “LOL, I’m not mad at you. You have to learn not to get caught.” The morning of the shooting, Crumbley’s teacher saw him drawing a picture of the gun and a bullet with blood everywhere and a note. “The thoughts won’t stop. help me.” along with other notes.  At this point the teacher took out her phone and took a picture. The school called the parents in for a meeting and told the parents they needed to get their son counseling within 48 hours. The officials brought up the idea of his parents taking him home however the parents refused. According to CNN, the school officials neglected to check the suspect’s bag for the gun which he had stashed in his bag. 

   After the shooting the suspect was arrested and his arraignment took place on Dec 1, 2021. The parents however did not show up to their son’s arraignment instead they made their appearance by video. Later, prosecutors commented that they were fully planning on prosecuting the parents.Then Crumbley’s attorney released a statement saying that they are not fleeing and they fully intended to turn themselves in. 

   Afterward the prosecutors released that the parents were officially fugitives and released pictures of the parents into the public along with the type of car the police believe the parents are driving. Hours later the suspect’s were arrested in Detroit after hiding out in an empty warehouse. The police are working to arrest the person who aided them along their journey and helped them get into the warehouse. 

  The Washington Post conducted a study of 145 school shootings in the two decades after 1999. Out of the 145 school shootings, the parents were only charged with a crime in four of them. Therefore this is a highly unusual situation. It is extremely hard to convict a parent because the prosecutors must first prove that the parent was negligent. In this case, authorities have discovered that the firearm used in the shooting was in an unlocked drawer. The prosecutors believe that they have a strong case for involuntary manslaughter. 

   The Michigan football team paid tribute to one of the victims, a football player named Tate Myre during one of their Big Ten title games. Myre died en route to the hospital in the back of a police car. The team wore patches which had his initials on them, his number (42), and four hearts to symbolize the victims of the shooting. Coincidentally, the game also ended with Michigan scoring 42 points. 

   The parents of two children have filed a lawsuit against the district on behalf of their daughters Riley and Bella Franz for $100 million. According to CNN Riley Franz was among those injured. Franz was shot in the neck and the parents are claiming that aside the injuries sustained from the shooting, Franz will have PTSD. All together the Franz’s other daughter Bella, was not injured. However, she will forever struggle with PTSD after watching her sister hurting and in pain after she was injured by Crumbley.  Those named in the lawsuit include Superintendent Timothy Throne, Oxford High Principal Steven Wolf, Dean of Students Ryan Moore, two school counselors, two teachers and a staff member.