Teenager charged in school shooting
OXFORD TOWNSHIP, MICH. >> A 15-year-old boy was charged with murder and terrorism for a shooting that killed four fellow students and injured more at a Michigan high school, authorities said Wednesday as they revealed additional details, including a meeting between troubled officials and his parents just a few hours before the bloodshed.
No motive was offered by Oakland County authorities, a day after violence at Oxford High School, roughly 30 miles north of Detroit. But prosecutor Karen McDonald said the shooting was premeditated, based on a “mountain of digital evidence” against Ethan Crumbley. “This was not just an impulsive act,” McDonald said. Indeed, sheriff’s Lt. Tim Willis told a judge that Crumbley recorded a video the night before the violence in which he discussed killing students. Crumbley was charged as an adult with two dozen crimes, including murder, attempted murder and terrorism causing death. During his arraignment, he replied, “Yes, I do,” when asked if he understood the charges. Defense attorney Scott Kozak entered a plea of not guilty.
“He deliberately brought the handgun that day with the intent to murder as many students as he could,” assistant prosecutor Marc Keast said in successfully arguing for no bail for Crumbley and a transfer to jail from a juvenile facility.
Earlier, Sheriff Mike Bouchard told reporters that Crumbley’s parents were called to the school Tuesday “for behavior in the classroom that was concerning.” The teen remained in school, and the shooting occurred a few hours later. In court, Keast said Crumbley entered a bathroom with a backpack and came out with a semiautomatic handgun, firing at students while moving down the hallway. The four students who were killed were Tate Myre, 16; Hana St. Juliana, 14; Madisyn Baldwin, 17; and Justin Shilling, 17.