Teen pleads guilty in Michigan high school shooting that killed 4 students
A teen accused of killing four students and wounding seven others at a Michigan high school last year pleaded guilty Monday to murder charges.
Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty to all 24 charges against him — including one count of terrorism causing death and four counts of first-degree murder — for fatally shooting the four students at Oxford High School on November 30.
Appearing in an Oakland County court, the 16-year-old answered "yes" when asked if he killed each slain victim — all identified by name.
Crumbley, wearing an orange jumpsuit and a medical mask pulled down below his chin, also confirmed that on the day of the mass shooting, he got a gun from an unlocked container in his home, hid it in his backpack and pulled it out of his bag in a bathroom before opening fire on his schoolmates.
The teen faces up to life in prison without parole on several of the charges. His parents, who have pleaded not guilty to related charges, are scheduled to be tried in January.
Crumbley, who was 15 at the time of the shooting, previously pleaded not guilty to the charges but changed his plea at a hearing in Oakland County Circuit Court.
After Crumbley's guilty plea Monday, state Judge Kwame Rowe scheduled a hearing for Feb. 9 and said he will set a sentencing date after that, allowing victims' families to speak at the sentencing hearing.
The teen's parents, Jennifer and James Crumbley, were each charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter related to the shooting after prosecutors accused them of giving their son easy access to a gun and ignoring signs that he was a threat before the shooting.
Prosecutors argued Jennifer and James Crumbley played "a much larger role than just buying their son a gun." They said there were many things the parents could have done besides simply locking up the gun, which could have prevented the tragedy.
The parents have pleaded not guilty, and their attorneys have argued in court documents the charges have no legal justification and the couple should not be held responsible for the killings their son was accused of committing.
The trial for the parents was initially scheduled to begin Monday but was postponed last month to start in January. Jennifer and James Crumbley remain in custody at a county jail.
James Crumbley had used in the shooting just four days before the deadly attack, prosecutors have said.
During the teen's arraignment, prosecutors described Ethan Crumbley "" walking the hallways, aiming a gun at students and firing at close range after emerging from a school restroom holding the firearm.
Students and teachers relied on tactics they'd learned in active shooter drills to protect themselves. When the gunfire erupted, frightened students barricaded doors, turned off the lights, and called for help. Some of the children in case they needed to fight back.
Four students died that day: Madisyn Baldwin, 17; Tate Myre, 16; Hana St. Juliana, 14; and Justin Shilling, 17. Six other students and one teacher were injured.
