Concerning behavior led to 2 meetings prior to shooting

Ethan Crumbley met with Oxford High School officials just hours before he allegedly went on a shooting spree Tuesday killing four students and wounding seven more.

Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said his department had not been tipped off on Crumbley prior to the shooting.

“We had no information from the school, but we have since learned that the school did have contact with the student the day before and the day of the shooting for behavior in the classroom that they felt was concerning,’’ Bouchard said at a Wednesday press conference.

Crumbley had met on Monday with school officials and then on Tuesday his parents were brought in about 10 a.m. for a face-toface meeting with their son and school officials.

“The content of that meeting obviously is part of the investigation, but we did not learn of that meeting or the content of that meeting until after the shooting and during the investigation,’’ Bouchard said.

The sheriff would not get into the specifics of either of those meetings because now it is part of the investigation. But he did say that prior to those meetings there was no contact with Crumbley and school officials or nothing in Crumbley’s file about concerning behavior or discipline.

Just more than two hours after the meeting on Tuesday, Crumbley came out of a restroom with a loaded 9 mm Sig Sauer handgun and started shooting. Bouchard said he did not leave the school after the meeting and come back, he was there all along. The first 911 call was at 12:52 p.m.

Because the school had issues with Crumbley’s behavior and never shared it with the sheriff’s office, that decision will now be a part of the investigation.

“We always prefer to err on the side of too much rather than too little. I can’t really go much beyond that. We would rather check out a thousand nothings than miss one real deal,’’ Bouchard said. “It’s certainly part of our investigation, that’s where we learned about it.’’

It’s uncertain at this point how Crumbley got the handgun into the school, but Bouchard said it’s likely it was either in his backpack or tucked in his waist. Oxford, like many high schools, does not use metal detectors at entrances.

The motive is unknown since Crumbley has hired a lawyer and has not spoken to authorities. Investigators collected his phone and documents while executing a search warrant and will examine both to try to establish a motive.

Responding to social media posts, Bouchard said that he asked school officials if there were any records that Crumbley had been bullied.

“The coordinator of the anti-bullying programs had no information that he had been bullied by anyone,’’ Bouchard said. “I will say again, there is nothing that he could have faced that would warrant senseless, absolutely brutal violence on other kids.’’

Crumbley, who is 15, was scheduled to be moved Wednesday from the Children’s Village juvenile detention center to the Oakland County Jail. He has been charged as an adult and faces one count of terrorism causing death, four counts of first-degree murder, seven counts of assault with intent to murder and 12 counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. He faces up to life in prison if convicted.

If anyone has information or believes they know something about this case, any case or any potential threat anywhere call 248858-4911 or email OCSO@ oakgov.com. Anonymous tips are accepted.