The Michigan Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s ruling on Thursday that Oxford school district employees were not responsible for a 2021 mass shooting.
On November 30, 2021, 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley opened fire on his classmates and others at Oxford High School in a Detroit exurb. Crumbly is serving a life prison sentence after killing four students and injuring seven more, including a teacher.
Crumbley’s parents, James and Jennifer Crumbley, have already been held partly responsible for the shooting and are each serving a 10-year sentence for involuntary manslaughter.
The families of the shooting victims want Oxford staff to take some of the blame for the tragic event, but in a 3-0 decision, the Michigan appeals court decided that there was no evidence presented to suggest that employees of the school district were the “proximate cause” of the shooting.
“Ultimately, plaintiffs have not identified any evidence that would support their claim the individual Oxford defendants were the proximate cause of plaintiffs’ injuries instead of EC [Ethan Crumbley],” the appeals court wrote in its ruling.
A makeshift memorial for shooting victims outside of Oxford High School in Oxford, Michigan, on December 1, 2021. The Michigan Court of Appeals upheld a ruling on Thursday that Oxford school district employees were not responsible for the shooting.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
A lower court decision made by Oakland County Circuit Judge Mary Ellen Brennan in March 2023, which the appeals court affirmed, said that governmental immunity applied to this case.
According to Michigan law, government agencies and their staff are not typically liable for their negligent acts if performed within the scope of their governmental function or employment. Lawyers usually have to show that gross negligence occurred to win lawsuits against a public body or staff in the state.
Oxford staff did express concerns about Crumbley, who drew pictures of a gun, a bullet and a wounded man on a math paper with despondent phrases like “The thoughts won’t stop, help me” before the shooting, and a meeting was held with Crumbley’s parents the day of the shooting.
However, the appeals court said that it was Crumbley who “made the definite and premeditated decision” to bring a gun into Oxford High School.
Crumbley’s parents were quickly called to a school meeting following the discovery of the disturbing math paper sketches but declined a request to take him home. Both his parents and school staff did not check Crumbly’s backpack for a gun.
Prosecutors in James and Jennifer Crumbley’s cases argued that they ignored their son’s mental health needs, gifted him a gun and then failed to secure the firearm safely.
The shooting victims’ families will be appealing the ruling to the Michigan Supreme Court, according to the law firm representing the families.
“I am disappointed by the decision at the court of appeals, but I think we knew ultimately this was a case that was going to end up in the hands of the Michigan Supreme Court in one fashion or another,” Christopher Desmond, an attorney who represents the victims’ families, said. “Whoever lost at the court of appeals was surely going to be filing an application to that court and asking them to review this case.”
The Oxford school district is also facing legal challenges in federal court.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.
