(Washington) The parents of the teenager who opened fire at a Michigan high school were charged with manslaughter on Friday for letting their son use the gun he killed four students, a rare move by the American justice.
Ethan Crumbley, 15, “is the one who walked into high school and pulled the trigger” but “other people contributed to this event and I intend to hold them to account Oakland County District Attorney Karen McDonald said.
Shootings remain a recurring scourge in the United States, claiming large numbers of victims in a country where the right to own guns is constitutionally guaranteed. But lawsuits against relatives of their perpetrators are extremely rare.
“I expect parents and everyone to show humanity and act to stop a potential tragedy,” said Mme McDonald’s.
James Crumbley had bought the semi-automatic pistol used by his son the previous Friday, the day of the big Black Friday promotions.
OAKLAND COUNTY SHERIFF OFFICE PHOTO, VIA REUTERS
Ethan Crumbley, 15, in his forensic identification photo taken at Oxford County Jail in Pontiac, Mich. On 1er December 2021. He was charged with terrorist acts and murders, and faces life imprisonment, as he is being prosecuted as if he were of legal age.
After the purchase, the teenager practiced shooting and posted images of the gun on social media, making it clear that it was his.
On the day of the shooting, Ethan Crumbley was summoned with his parents by the administration of high school in Oxford, a small town in Michigan, after writing a post about suicide and death: “Help me, ma life is useless, the world is dead, blood everywhere ”.
False alarms
“It is incomprehensible to think that a parent can read these words knowing that their son had access to a lethal weapon he had given him, and I think it is a crime,” said the prosecutor.
She also blames the parents for not asking their son if he had his gun on him that day or where it was, even though the gun was in his backpack and he was allowed to return in class.
Two hours after this meeting, he opened fire when he got out of the toilets, methodically progressing through the corridors of the secondary school and notably pulling on the doors of the classes where the students had barricaded themselves. He fired at least 30 bullets.
According to the police, he had aimed at random, without choosing previously identified victims.
On the news of a school shooting, Jennifer Crumbley had sent a message to her son, writing “Ethan, do not do it”.
Four students died and six others were injured, as well as a teacher in the shooting which caused a trauma in this city north of Detroit.
The gunman surrendered to the police without offering any resistance. He was indicted for “terrorist act” and “assassinations”, and risks life imprisonment for being prosecuted as an adult.
His motives remain a mystery because he has not explained himself since his arrest and has chosen to remain silent during his appearance. He pleaded not guilty when he appeared before a judge on Wednesday.
He is incarcerated in the Pontiac prison where he is held in solitary confinement.
Since the tragedy, Michigan authorities have been “inundated” with messages of threats against schools in that state, creating a climate of psychosis among the population.
More than 60 schools have been closed statewide due to “threatening behavior,” according to Oakland County police, adding that most of the threats were bogus.