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Crumbley parents get small victory as Michigan Supreme Court pauses trial
The parents of Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley are facing manslaughter charges - but the Michigan Supreme Court has sent the case to the appeals court for a review on charges, putting a pause on the trial.
(FOX 2) - The Michigan State Supreme Court has paused a pending criminal trial against the parents of the Oxford High School shooter, sending the case back to the Court of Appeals.
James and Jennifer Crumbley are both charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter after their son Ethan went on a shooting spree last year.
A trial for the parents was scheduled for January. However, the state Supreme Court questioned whether there was insufficient evidence to try both Crumbleys after the parents appealed the case.
"Trial court proceedings in Oakland Circuit Court stay pending the completion of this appeal," read a motion from the high court.
The stay by the court comes a day before the one-year anniversary of the mass shooting, which left four kids dead and several others injured. Ethan Crumbley has since pled guilty and is awaiting sentencing.
RELATED: 'They covered it up': Parents of Oxford High School shooting victims on new allegations
Both parents involved in the case have been incarcerated in Oakland County jail.
Prosecutor Karen McDonald has pushed for criminal charges against the parents, arguing they were neglectful of their son's mental health and enabled his dark tendencies when they bought him a firearm. During his guilty plea, Ethan said he gave his father the money to buy him the gun used in the fatal shooting.
Parents of teen shooters have rarely been tried for the crime.
James and Jennifer Crumbley have fought to have charges against them thrown out, with their attorneys arguing that they couldn't have known what their son was allegedly planning. They have also asked to be released from jail while their cases progress.
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More evidence expected in next Ethan Crumbley hearing after guilty plea in Oxford shooting
The Oxford superintendent released a statement saying he hopes today's hearing a step towards healing for the community.
What are James and Jennifer Crumbley charged with?
Over the course of two days in February, multiple pieces of evidence were presented suggesting that James and Jennifer Crumbley failed to address concerns regarding Ethan Crumbley's mental health. The couple is also accused of buying a gun for the 15-year-old on Friday, Nov. 26 - just four days before the shooting at Oxford High School.
According to authorities, Jennifer Crumbley made an Instagram post that said she was at a gun range shooting a weapon that was her son's Christmas present days before the shooting.
During the preliminary exam, text messages between Jennifer Crumbley and Ethan Crumbley were presented that showed for months before the shooting, the teen would text his mother about hallucinations he was having while home alone. On multiple occasions, she didn't acknowledge these messages.
Text messages between Ethan Crumbley and a close friend also revealed a look into the teen's relationship with his parents.
In an exchange on April 5, 2021, prosecutors described "quite a bit" of discussion about his mental state in which Ethan Crumbley told his friend he was "f----- up," experiencing hallucinations, and had asked his parents for help.