The jury in the Jennifer Crumbley manslaughter trial has reached a verdict.
Crumbley, 45, was charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter for her son Ethan’s November 2021 shooting rampage.
As prosecutors painted her as a reckless and negligent mother, the trial saw humiliating revelations about Crumbley’s private life come to light, where she admitted to having an affair with a local fire captain and recruiting strangers for hotel sex parties around the time of the tragedy.
The charges carry a maximum sentence of up to 60 years in prison. Her husband James is due to stand trial in March
Jennifer Crumbley (left) embraces her attorney Shannon Smith on Friday before closing arguments to her landmark case
Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty to his crimes and is currently serving life in prison without the possibility of parole, after murdering four classmates in the Oxford High School shooting in 2021
James and Jennifer Crumbley were both charged in connection with their son’s shooting, the first time parents have faced charges over a school shooting
The case was seen as a watershed legal moment in prosecutions over America’s school shooting crisis.
Crumbley’s trial centered on her relationship with her troubled son and the numerous red flags that she ignored before he murdered four classmates and shot seven others.
In two days of blockbuster testimony, Crumbley took the stand in her own defense to try and combat claims she was a ‘negligent’ mother.
But her claims that she and Ethan were ‘close’ were rebuffed by prosecutors, who presented a slew of evidence that found she recklessly brushed off her son’s pleas for mental health help.
Among the damning evidence was final diary entries written by Ethan before the shooting, where he wrote: ‘My parents won’t listen to me about help or therapist.’
‘I have zero help for my mental problems and it’s causing me to shoot up the f****** school,’ another entry read.
Crumbley’s claims 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 over her disturbed son.
On Wednesday, Jennifer’s extramarital affair with fire captain Brian Meloche was exposed
In one of Ethan Crumbley’s diary entries shown on Thursday, Ethan wrote: ‘I have zero help for my mental problems and it’s causing me to shoot up the f****** school’
‘I want help but my parents don’t listen to me so I can’t get any help’, read another entry
In the lead up to the shooting, Ethan displayed a number of alarming red flags that foretold his violent, unhinged mindset.
Earlier in the year, the then-15-year-old had frantically texted his mother that he thought he was being chased by a demon, including believing items were being flung across the room.
After his desperate attempts at getting his mother’s attention were ignored, Ethan texted her: ‘At least text me back…’
Prosecutors said the teenager’s antics were evidence of him losing his grasp on reality and were a cry for help, however Jennifer tried to downplay the episode in her testimony.
The testimony was scathed online by many for her callous response to certain pieces of evidence and the lack of many mentions of her son’s victims.
She claimed that Ethan’s warnings were typical of her ‘sarcastic’ son ‘fooling around’, and quipped that he named the specter ‘Boris Johnson.’
‘He’s been convinced our house has been haunted since 2015,’ she added.
Police say Crumbley’s first victim was 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 rampage 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 turned to Crumbley’s actions on the day of the mass shooting, she faced scrutiny over her decision not to withdraw Ethan from school after being brought in for an alarming meeting.
That morning, a teacher found disturbing drawings and writings on his homework, where he scrawled ‘the thoughts won’t stop, help me’, alongside depictions of mass shootings.
With a handgun bought by his father stashed in his backpack, the parents declined to take him home – with Jennifer’s claim she was too busy at work refuted in testimony from her boss.