For the over 1,500 students of Oxford High School in the city of Oxford, Michigan, Nov. 30 would be the day that their lives changed forever. At 12:51 p.m., 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley emerged from one of the school’s bathrooms with a Sig Sauer SP 2022 handgun and proceeded to open fire on his fellow students, which resulted in four deaths and placed seven others, including a teacher, in the hospital with gunshot wounds. Crumbley was captured by law enforcement minutes after he emptied all three of the magazines he had with him. His parents, Jennifer and James Crumbley, who went on the run after the event, would be taken into custody days later.

More than 20 charges have been brought against Crumbly for the pain he caused for countless families of the Oxford High School community. The sophomore is currently being charged as an adult on several accounts, including terrorism and multiple charges of first-degree murder. Furthermore, his parents are being charged with involuntary manslaughter, as the weapon Ethan had used was bought by his parents and kept in an easily accessible location, allowing him to steal the weapon from his home and bring it to school. 

Crumbley’s parents also did little to prevent the shooting from occurring on the day of. On the morning of Nov. 30, a teacher found a drawing with a bullet, gun, and several phrases including “blood everywhere” on Ethan’s desk. He was brought to the counselor’s office, and his parents were called to the school. A long conversation between the counselors and the Crumbley family regarding their son’s mental state and his potential to harm others led the counselors to believe that Crumbly was not a threat. As a result, they let him return to class while telling the parents to call Child Protective Services within 48 hours in regard to the variety of disturbing notes and messages their son had made. This decision would prove fatal soon enough.

Each of the four students who died had their own unique story. Senior Madisyn Baldwin, a passionate artist, had already been accepted to multiple universities, including a full scholarship to some. Another senior, Justin Shilling, was employed at a local restaurant and was the vice captain of Oxford’s bowling team who also spent time assisting a senior living facility to take care of its patients. He would succumb to his gunshot wounds in the hospital, three days after the shooting. Junior Tate Myre, who died in a police car en route to the hospital, was a two-year veteran of Oxford’s Varsity Football team and was honored for his actions against the shooter, which have not been released in detail. And freshman Hana St. Juliana, who had been a player on Oxford’s volleyball team, had also made her debut on the school basketball team the night before the shooting. 

Since the shooting, vigils have been held in honor of the victims, and the prosecution of Crumbly and his parents has begun. The prosecutor, Karen Mc Donald, expressed her condolences but also anger and sadness during a press conference the day after the shooting.

“While the shooter was the one who entered the high school and pulled the trigger, there are other individuals who contributed to the events on Nov. 30. And it is my intention to hold them accountable as well. It’s imperative we prevent this from happening again. No other parent or community should have to live through this nightmare,” she said.

Photo courtesy of COMMONS.WIKIMEDIA.ORG