The jury in Jennifer Crumbley's manslaughter trial has found the school shooter's mother guilty on all counts.
Crumbley, 45, was convicted of four counts of involuntary manslaughter for her son Ethan's November 2021 shooting spree, in which he shot 11 people and killed four.
Prosecutors portrayed her as a reckless and neglectful mother as humiliating revelations about Crumbley's personal life emerged during the trial, in which she admitted to having an affair with a local firefighter and recruiting strangers for hotel sex parties at the time of the tragedy .
The mother appeared stunned when she became the first mother ever to be convicted of a mass shooting committed by her child and now faces up to 60 years in prison.
Her sentencing is scheduled for April and her husband James is scheduled to stand trial in March. Her murderous son Ethan was sentenced to life in prison without parole last year.
Jennifer Crumbley (right, with her attorney, Shannon Smith) looked stunned as the jury returned her guilty verdict Tuesday, becoming the first mother ever convicted of her child's school shooting
Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty to his crimes and is currently serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole after he murdered four classmates in the 2021 Oxford High School shooting
James and Jennifer Crumbley have both been charged in connection with the shooting of their son. This is the first time parents have been charged in a school shooting
The case was seen as a turning point in America's school shooting prosecutions and raised the possibility that parents of teenage gunmen will be charged more regularly in the future.
After closing arguments were read on Friday, the jury took a weekend break before taking two days to reach its verdict, as Judge Cherly Matthews admitted it was “the hardest thing you've ever done.”
Crumbley's trial focused on her relationship with her troubled son and the numerous warning signs she ignored before he opened fire with a semi-automatic pistol at his school.
In a blockbuster two-day deposition, Crumbley took the stand in her own defense to counter claims she was a “negligent” mother.
But her claims that she and Ethan were “close” were rejected by prosecutors, who presented a series of evidence showing she had recklessly dismissed her son's pleas for mental health help.
The damning evidence included final diary entries Ethan wrote before the shooting in which he wrote, “My parents don't listen to me when it comes to help or therapists.”
“I have no help for my mental health issues and it keeps me going to damn school,” another post said.
Crumbley's claim that they were a “close” family also came just a day after her extramarital affair was exposed in court, as prosecutors argued she was focused on her tryst with a fire captain because of her distraught son.
On Wednesday, Jennifer's extramarital affair with Fire Chief Brian Meloche was revealed
In one of Ethan Crumbley's diary entries shown on Thursday, Ethan wrote: “I have no help for my mental health issues and that makes me want to shoot up the damn school.”
“I want help but my parents don’t listen to me so I can’t get help,” another entry reads
Leading up to the shooting, Ethan exhibited a number of alarming warning signs that suggested his violent, unhinged mindset.
Earlier that year, the then 15-year-old frantically wrote to his mother that he believed he was being chased by a demon and believed objects were being thrown across the room.
After his desperate attempts to get his mother's attention were ignored, Ethan texted her, “At least text me back…”
Prosecutors said the teen's antics were evidence that he had lost his grip on reality and were a cry for help, but Jennifer tried to downplay the incident in her statement.
The statement was heavily criticized by many online for its callous response to certain pieces of evidence such as it
claimed Ethan's warnings were typical of her “sarcastic” son's “goofing around” and joked that he had named the ghost in their house “Boris Johnson.”
“He has been convinced our house is haunted since 2015,” she added.
The lack of numerous mentions of her son's victims also became a point of contention for many of those who watched the jury trial as it was broadcast live to millions of people.
According to police, Crumbley's first victim was college freshman Phoebe Arthur (pictured), who was shot in the face but miraculously survived. A total of 13 people were shot, four of whom died
Madisyn Baldwin, 17, (left) and Hana St Juliana, 14, (right) died in the 2021 shooting at Oxford High School in suburban Detroit
Justin Shilling, 17, (left) and Tate Myre, 16, (right) were also killed in the senseless shooting
As evidence of Crumbley's actions mounted on the day of the mass shooting, she came under scrutiny for her decision not to take Ethan out of school after being invited to an alarming meeting.
That morning, a teacher found disturbing drawings and writings on his homework, where he scribbled “The thoughts don't stop, help me” next to depictions of mass shootings.
Because he had a pistol his father had bought in his backpack, his parents refused to take him home. Jennifer's claim that she was too busy at work was contradicted by the testimony of her boss, who stated that she should have been allowed to look after her son.
Crumbley's secret lover, local fire captain Brian Meloche, also claimed she wanted to meet that morning and said they met regularly in a parking lot across from her work.
After leaving Ethan at school, she claimed in her statement that her first inkling that something was wrong came when she received a text message from her son saying, “I love you” – a rare display of emotion , which she found to be “abnormal.” '
Jurors in Jennifer Crumbley's involuntary manslaughter trial were shown disturbing drawings by the mass shooter's son, Ethan, hours before he opened fire at Oxford High School, killing four people
When reports of a school shooter rocked the city of Oxford, Michigan, Jennifer said she ran home to find the gun and bullets missing.
In her callous statement, she said she feared her son was the shooter, but added that her biggest concern was that he might commit suicide.
She texted him, “Ethan, don't do it,” but said she wasn't referring to the shooting, but that she didn't want him to turn the gun on himself.
“I didn’t believe he shot anyone at all, just that there were gunshots,” she added.