Judge Upholds Ethan Crumbley’s Life Sentence and Guilty Plea for Oxford School Shooting

A Michigan judge ruled that the school shooter’s guilty plea and life sentence without parole were entered knowingly and will not be reconsidered.

Ethan Crumbley, the convicted Oxford High School shooter, was denied motions to withdraw his guilty plea or have his life sentence reconsidered by Judge Kwame Rowe.
The judge concluded that Crumbley’s guilty plea to charges including terrorism and first-degree murder was entered voluntarily and with full understanding of the legal process.
Crumbley’s defense argued that his cognitive impairments, potentially linked to fetal alcohol exposure, were not adequately considered during the plea and sentencing process, but the judge found this evidence unpersuasive.
Prosecutors emphasized that Crumbley meticulously planned the 2021 attack, which killed four students and injured seven others, and that his sentence is proportionate to the severity of his crimes.
Crumbley’s parents, James and Jennifer Crumbley, are also serving prison sentences for involuntary manslaughter, marking the first instance of U.S. parents being held accountable for a mass school shooting committed by their child.