Michigan
Michigan shooter’s mom told police ‘he’s going to have to suffer’ after school slayings
Jennifer Crumbley was “irritated” and “kind of frustrated” when police took her into custody in the aftermath of a shooting at her son’s Michigan high school, a detective testified at her trial Wednesday.
Days before, her son Ethan Crumbley, then 15, killed four people and wounded seven others at Oxford High School, about 45 miles north of Detroit. She and her husband had gone into hiding after being charged in connection with the massacre but authorities found them sleeping at a Detroit art gallery five days after the Nov. 30, 2021 shootings.
“I could tell she was kind of frustrated,” Det. Lt. Sam Marzban of the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department told jurors. “I told her there were several dead kids … and that this was a significant incident, that it was on the national news and that the president had addressed it.”
“Was Jennifer Crumbley crying?” Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald asked.
She was not, he answered, but Marzban said he recalled Crumbley saying, “‘Lives were lost today, and he’s going to have to suffer.’
“The choice of words was odd for me,” he said.
In the days before the shooting, prosecutors have said, Ethan Crumbley was depressed, lonely and hallucinating. The teen texted his mom that he was seeing demons throw bowls around the house, and hearing toilets flush when no one was home.
His parents were called to the school when Ethan drew a picture of a gun on a math worksheet with a bleeding body and the words, “The thoughts won’t stop, help me.” A day before, a teacher saw Ethan searching for ammunition on his phone, and when the school contacted Jennifer Crumbley, she texted her son, “Lol. I’m not mad at you. You have to learn not to get caught,” according to the prosecutor’s office.
The Crumbleys, prosecutors said, promised to get help for Ethan, but declined to take him home and then returned to work without telling the school their son had access to a gun. Ethan went back to class; two hours later, at about 1 p.m., he came out of a bathroom and opened fire on the school with the gun, which was in his backpack.
Marzban was the first person to testify Wednesday in the ongoing trial of Jennifer Crumbley, who’s charged with involuntary manslaughter linked to the Nov. 30, 2021 shooting spree at Oxford High School. Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison. His father, Jennifer’s husband James Crumbley, will be tried separately beginning March 5.
A day earlier, a teacher saw Ethan searching for ammunition on his phone. The school contacted his mother, Jennifer Crumbley, who then told her son in a text message: “Lol. I’m not mad at you. You have to learn not to get caught,” the prosecutor’s office said.
The detective told the jury and Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Cheryl Matthews his job included identifying the shooting victims; he provided graphic details about a scene he called “kind of surreal,” including one victim who was still wearing her backpack when he found her in the hallway.
Jennifer Crumbley, the first parent in the U.S. to stand trial on charges stemming from a child’s mass shooting, went on the run with her husband after the shooting. The prosecution is arguing that the Crumbleys were selfish and uncaring, ignoring their son’s spiraling mental illness and buying him the gun that he used in the shootings rather than seeking help for him.
The Crumbleys’ lawyers say they had no way of knowing or predicting that their son might go on a murderous spree, that the gun was secured and the charges are overreaching.
When the Crumbleys were discovered at a Detroit art gallery days after the shooting, Marzban testified, Jennifer Crumbley “did not want to give me her phone. She seemed irritated.” He said her husband told her the police would eventually get the phone, so she turned it over and gave him the password.
On trial: Jennifer Crumbley, charged in son’s school shooting, sobs at ‘horrific’ footage of rampage
The arguments: Jury selection begins for Oxford school shooter’s mother in unprecedented trial
Marzban also helped secure a search warrant of the Crumbleys’ house after identifying Ethan through items found in his backpack, including his cellphone.
The phone had texts from Jennifer Crumbley that said, “Ethan don’t do it,” about an hour after the shooting had been reported. Another text from James Crumbley read, “Ethan, call me now.”
The jury Wednesday also saw video footage of the Crumbleys’ arrest and heard from the person who called 911 to report where the couple was sleeping, a business owner nearby who recognized the description of the Crumbleys’ car from posters circulating after the shooting.
The prosecution has said it expects to rest its case by Friday and it still had nine witnesses to put on the stand.
Detroit Tigers sweep first-place Tampa Bay Rays after rough May
The Tigers beat the Rays, 7-2, on Wednesday as Detroit scored 25 runs with 10 homers in the three-game series.
Detroit — Tarik Skubal has been through this before.
When he was coming back from flexor tendon surgery in 2023, he made two rehab starts with High-A West Michigan. One of those starts came against the Dayton Dragons, the same team he will face Sunday in what may be his one and only rehab start this year.
“Oh yeah,” he said. “I have some history with them (smiles). I pitched two innings and they swung at every pitch. I got through in like eight pitches and I was like, ‘Guys, this does nothing for anybody involved.’”
The reason Skubal is making the start in Grand Rapids is because the weather forecast for both Triple- A Toledo in Iowa and for Double-A Erie in Richmond, Virginia, is bad.
“I’m excited I get to go compete again,” Skubal said. “It’s been about a month or so and when you don’t get to play, it sucks. I’m excited to compete. I don’t really care about what level it’s at. Ideally, it would be Triple A, but with the weather there, it doesn’t seem like it’d be smart to send me there to potentially not throw.”
It’s quite remarkable, actually, that Skubal is at this point this quickly. He had a loose body in his elbow removed by a relatively new arthroscopic procedure using a smaller, less invasive needle on May 6.
Through a couple of live bullpen sessions, he’s built himself to four innings and 60-plus pitches. The goal for Sunday will be five innings, or at least five ups, and between 75-80 pitches.
If that goes well and he recovers well, the Tigers could activate him for the series in Cleveland that starts June 12.
“We were thinking it was going to be three months to recover and when we learned it could be four to six weeks, it felt like a very positive thing,” Skubal said. “To be back and competing again right now is special. Not just for me but for the future of guys who have this injury.”
It’s a positive thing for the Tigers, too, who within a couple of weeks could get Skubal, Justin Verlander (hip) and Casey Mize (groin) back off the injured list. Verlander and Mize will throw bullpens Saturday at Comerica Park.
Manager AJ Hinch said a decision will be made on whether to activate Verlander after that session. He said Mize will need to make at least one rehab start.
Reliever Kenley Jansen (pelvic inflammation) threw a bullpen Friday. He will be eligible to return on June 12, as well. Hinch indicated Jansen also will make a rehab appearance before being cleared.
“It gives us a performance boost more than anything,” manager AJ Hinch said. “Our guys have been grinding quite a bit. I don’t know how to accurately describe that energy. But there’s a ton of energy when you get Gleyber (Torres) and Carp (Kerry Carpenter) back. And these guys are watching those pitchers do their work to get back.
“It’s not anything against the guys we have. We have to try to win tonight’s game without those (pitchers). There’s a lot going on behind the scenes to get ready to play the game. But the lineup looks at little better.”
It was a compelling juxtaposition Friday afternoon, Skubal addressing the media flanked by the empty lockers of Mize and Verlander along the same back wall of the clubhouse.
“Coming off a really good series in Tampa,” he said. “Flipping the script on that road trip gave everyone in the room a ton of confidence. And now, obviously, we got some help coming back. And frankly, there needs to be a sense of urgency with this group if we want to make a push to be in it for the rest of the year.”
It goes without saying, of course, that making a push likely will be the only thing that keeps Skubal, a free agent in the offseason, off the trade block in late July and early August.
“We’ve dug ourselves a hole and it’s got to be up to us to get ourselves out of it,” he said. “Getting some talent back is going to help. But until we get that talent back, we’ve got to win tonight’s game. That should be the focus. It shouldn’t be when are we going to get this wall back, it should be let’s win today and we’ll get those guys back when we get them.”
Mariners at Tigers
First pitch: 1:10 p.m. Saturday, Comerica Park, Detroit
TV/radio: Detroit Sports Net, 97.1/107.9 FM
Scouting report
▶ RHP Bryce Miller (1-0, 1.71), Mariners: The start of his season was delayed by a left oblique strain, but he’s wasted no time getting back in a groove. In four games (three starts), he’s allowed four earned runs with 20 strikeouts and four walks in 21 innings, while holding hitters to a .200 average, .320 slug and a 25% hard-hit rate. His four-seam fastball has ticked up, from 94.8 mph on average last season to 96.7. He’s splitter is also 2 mph firmer. And in case that’s not enough, he mixes sliders, cutters, sweepers (to righties) and knuckle-curves (to lefties).
▶ RHP Keider Montero (2-3, 3.69), Tigers: He’s coming off a gem against the White Sox (six, two-hit, shutout innings in 65 pitches). His improvement against left-handed hitters has taken his game up a level. In his career, lefties have a .449 slug and .771 OPS against him. This season, he’s neutralized them, .378 slug, .644 OPS. Lefties are 18 for 105 (.171) against his four-seam, changeup and slider combo.
Chris.McCosky@detroitnews.com
@cmccosky
A motorist was injured after their vehicle was struck by gunfire early Friday on Interstate 94 in Detroit’s east side, Michigan State Police reported.
The investigation resulted in the closure of the eastbound lanes of I-94 at Chalmers Avenue in Wayne County. The highway was closed at 5:52 a.m. and remained closed at 7 a.m., according to Michigan Department of Transportation traffic reports.
Motorists are encouraged to avoid the area and use alternate routes while the investigation continues. Motorists could re-enter I-94 at Cadieux Road.
State troopers said they were notified about 4:55 a.m. about a shooting that had occurred around 1:57 a.m. on eastbound I-94 near Harper Avenue. The victim later went to a local hospital to seek treatment for gunshot wounds.
During the investigation, troopers learned the victim’s vehicle had been struck multiple times by gunfire.
Michigan Department of Transportation traffic reports are at the MI Drive site.
Kyle Whittingham says appeal of Michigan football job was obvious
New Michigan football coach Kyle Whittingham said the appeal of the job was obvious on Sunday, Dec. 28, in Orlando.
Michigan football’s summer recruiting heater isn’t slowing down.
The Wolverines landed a commitment from four-star cornerback Blake Jenkins out of Katy, Texas (Katy Tompkins) on Thursday, June 4, which he announced on a livestream. Jenkins picked Michigan out of a final five that also included Alabama, Texas, Vanderbilt and SMU.
Jenkins, who stands 6 feet 1½ and 185 pounds, is the No. 33 cornerback in the nation, the No. 43 ranked player in Texas and No. 283 overall prospect in the class of 2027, per 247Sports composite rankings.
“Natural man corner with size and athleticism to match up with outside targets,” wrote 247Sports recruiting analyst Gabe Brooks. “Willing tackler with a lean, wiry frame that can add mass to enhance finishing strength.
“Displays sudden athleticism in press situations, whether covering short-to-intermediate routes or turning and running downfield.”
Jenkins had 26 tackles and two interceptions as a junior, according to his recruiting profile, and is the third cornerback to commit to U-M’s 2027 class, joining four-star Tavares Harrington and four-star Darius Johnson.
Michigan also has one safety commit in the class, Charles Woodson Jr., son of former U-M Heisman Trophy winner Charles Woodson. With the addition of Jenkins, Michigan now has 16 commits in its class of 2027 and has climbed up to No. 16.
Michigan has some recent success with players from Katy, Texas, as last year’s breakout star, Andrew Marsh, went to Katy Jordan.
Tony Garcia is the Michigan beat writer for the Detroit Free Press. Email him at apgarcia@freepress.com and follow him on X at @RealTonyGarcia.
-
Movie Reviews5 minutes agoMovie Review: CHUM – Assignment X
-
World17 minutes ago
Democrat Xavier Becerra advances to general election in race for California governor
-
News20 minutes agoSee Where the L.A. Mayoral Candidates Have Done Best So Far
-
Lifestyle55 minutes agoAfter D.C.’s Reflecting Pool gets repainted, visitors ask: What changed?
-
Technology1 hour agoMore than a decade later, the team behind N++ is back with a multiplayer sequel
-
World1 hour agoUS, Shield of the Americas condemn ‘ongoing efforts’ to overthrow Bolivia’s elected president amid unrest
-
Politics1 hour agoTrump expands TrumpRx prescription drug discount program to more than 800 medications
-
Health1 hour agoBreakthrough pancreatic cancer drug shows survival gains that surprise experts
