The parents of a teenager accused of carrying out a deadly shooting at Michigan's Oxford High School in November 2021 are due in court on Tuesday.
James and Jennifer Crumbley are each facing four counts of involuntary manslaughter in the death of four students who were allegedly killed by their son, Ethan, during a school shooting.
Their defense attorneys are trying to delay the hearing. The Crumbleys' attorneys say the prosecution has been slow to provide the evidence to them.
According to court documents, that evidence includes 3,000 pages of material, 70 hours of video and 10 hours of taped interviews with witnesses. They want more time to look it over before stepping into court.
In court documents, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said that "each filing, each court date, and the statements of the attorneys and the defendants all have an impact, one that is magnified by the media reporting that surrounds every event in this case."
McDonald is referring, in part, to two separate Zoom conferences that took place in December. The Crumbleys were seen publicly making gestures of love to one another. McDonald said their actions were only further traumatizing to victims and their families.
McDonald said they have also narrowed the witnesses down to no more than 30, including five who are coworkers of Jennifer Crumbley, five who were involved in the search at their home and Oxford school employees.
It's unclear whether presiding District Court Judge Julie Nicholson will push back the hearing.
The Crumbleys are accused of gifting their teenage son the gun used in the shooting, not locking up the weapon properly and ignoring signs of mental instability.
They are each being held on $500,000 bond.
Ethan Crumbley is being held without bond. He is expected to plead guilty by reason of insanity.
This story was originally published by Alex Bozarjian on Scripps station WXYZ in Detroit.
