The Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office has not, and will not, offer sentence agreements or deals to the convicted Oxford High School shooter who admitted to murdering four students, officials affirmed Tuesday.
The prosecutor’s office on Monday, Nov. 14, filed a motion to request the harshest sentence possible for Ethan Crumbley, 16, who admitted to fatally shooting four students and injuring seven other people on Nov. 30, 2021, at Oxford High School. Prosecutors have asked the court to sentence Crumbley to life in prison without the chance for parole.
Recommended Videos
Though Crumbley was charged as an adult with 24 felonies, he is still considered a minor, so a Miller hearing will commence before an official sentencing hearing, in which the judge will consider the shooter’s age and how it factors into sentencing. That hearing is scheduled to take place next February.
Prosecutors formally filed the sentencing request Monday to comply with Michigan law, court documents read. The motion comes three weeks after Crumbley pleaded guilty to the 24 charges against him, including 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 in the commission of a felony. He had previously pleaded not guilty to all charges.
At the hearing in which Crumbley pleaded guilty, the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office made it clear that they had not offered or reached a plea agreement prior to that hearing. The office said again Tuesday that they have no intention of reaching a deal with the convicted shooter.
“As we previously stated, there have been no plea bargains, no charge reductions, and no sentence agreements,” said David Williams, Oakland County chief assistant prosecutor. “The shooter has been offered and promised nothing. The motion filed yesterday is a formal declaration of our intent to seek the maximum possible sentence in this case.”
Prior to his admission of guilt, Crumbley was initially scheduled to go on trial in January of next year, where he was expected to “to assert the defense of insanity at the time of the alleged offense.” He instead changed course and admitted to premeditated murder of 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana, 16-year-old Tate Myre, 17-year-old Madisyn Baldwin and 17-year-old Justin Shilling, in addition to the other charges.
It is the first time that a U.S. school shooter has been convicted of terrorism.
The shooter is tentatively scheduled to appear in court next on Feb. 9, 2023.
The parents of the accused shooter are also facing criminal charges in connection with the fatal mass shooting. In addition to allegedly neglecting their son and his emotional and mental health needs, as prosecutors argue, James and Jennifer Crumbley are also accused of buying their son the handgun used in the shooting.
Their trial is expected to begin in January.
Read more: Transcript: Oxford shooter admits to premeditated murder, terrorism amid prosecutor questioning
Below is the entire motion filed by prosecutors on Nov. 14.
See: Complete Oxford High School shooting coverage right here