Oakland Co. judge considering remedy for 'likely' discovery violations in Oxford shooting case Pontiac — An Oakland County judge has again asserted that she believes prosecutors improperly failed to disclose agreements made with two Oxford High School officials shortly after a 2021 mass shooting, but she has not made a decision on what that means for the shooter's parents. Both James and Jennifer Crumbley, parents of Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley, this year filed requests for a new trial or for a dismissal of their convictions on four counts of involuntary manslaughter. Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Cheryl Matthews heard arguments on Jennifer's motion Jan. 31, and Friday heard arguments about James' motion. James Crumbley argued that prosecutors failed to disclose so-called proffer agreements made with Oxford High School counselor Shawn Hopkins and former Dean of Students Nick Ejak, that Matthews did not properly question the shooter about his invocation of his Fifth Amendment right to avoid self-incrimination and that James Crumbley did not have a legal duty to protect Oxford students. The proffer agreements noted that prosecutors would consider the statements made by Ejak and Hopkins during meetings with prosecutors "in deciding how to resolve this investigation as it relates to your client and any charges pending against your client being prosecuted by this office." James Crumbley's attorney, Alona Sharon, argued this was a promise of immunity, though prosecutors said it was not. Matthews indicated Friday she would not likely have a decision on James' motion nor on the proffer agreement issue that she has not ruled on in Jennifer's case. Matthews ruled against Jennifer Crumbley on every other aspect, including her claim that she did not have a legal duty to protect Oxford students. Matthews said she did not think it proper to rule on the proffer issue in Jennifer Crumbley's case before hearing arguments in the case of James Crumbley. James Crumbley did not appear in court Friday for his motion hearing, and Sharon said he did not wish to be brought to Pontiac for the case. At the start of the hearing Friday, Matthews asked Sharon, "What if I agree the prosecution violated the rules in regards to discovery? ... What is the remedy if there's a violation of the rules of discovery?" She said she "likely" thinks that prosecutors not giving defense the proffer agreements was a discovery violation. Matthews said in January during Jennifer Crumbley's motion hearing that she was "very, very" concerned about the possibility of a discovery violation as it relates to the proffer agreements. More: Mom of Oxford shooter asks to remove Oakland Co. prosecutor from case: 'She cannot be trusted' More: Judge denies motion to remove Oakland prosecutors from Oxford shooter's mom's case Sharon said a new trial would be the only proper remedy for James Crumbley, the only way to ensure he had a fair trial. He was unable to properly question Hopkins and Ejak about their possible biases and motive for testifying without the knowledge of the proffer agreements, Sharon said. "If the violation is intentional, if there is bad faith behind the violation for the purpose of gaining a tactical advantage, a severe sanction is warranted," Sharon said. "(James Crumbley) is seeking the one and only sanction that can right the wrong, that can make him whole, which is a new trial." Prosecutors have argued that they had no duty to disclose the proffer agreements. Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Shada wrote in a response to James Crumbley's motion that the agreements allowed prosecutors to meet with Ejak and Hopkins to evaluate them as potential witnesses. This is a standard part of trial preparation, he wrote, and was created at the request of their attorneys. They do not grant immunity, they do not require testimony and they do not restrict prosecutors' ability to bring charges against Ejak and Hopkins in the future. More: Prosecutors: Oxford shooter's dad's claims for new trial 'without merit' On Friday, Matthews asked Assistant Prosecutor Marc Keast if he agreed that prosecutors have a duty to disclose relevant and exculpatory evidence to the defendant, and Keast said he did. "Wasn't the defendant deprived of a robust cross-examination?" Matthews asked. "No," Keast said. Several minutes later, he said he did not "want to leave the court with the impression that there was an effort to hide evidence or gain an unfair advantage." "OK, well, you're not telling me it was a boo boo, that it was a willful nondisclosure?" Matthews asked. "You guys decided you didn't have to turn it over." "When it was decided to have them testify for the prosecution in 2024, we should have gone back and identified that as a statement under the court rule (that should have been disclosed)," Keast said. "That was a mistake and was made without malice." On the issue of whether Matthews properly questioned the shooter to see if he understood his Fifth Amendment rights and was properly invoking them, which Sharon claimed Matthews had not done, Matthews maintained there was no question that the shooter lawfully invoked his right. Matthews said the first time Jennifer Crumbley's attorney Shannon Smith brought up her desire to call the shooter as a witness, she was shocked. "Everyone at that time truly believed that calling the shooter as a witness would be tantamount to dropping a bomb in the middle of the courtroom," Matthews said. The shooter did not invoke his Fifth Amendment right until the day before Jennifer Crumbley's trial began in January 2024. Sharon also criticized prosecutors for focusing less on the legal arguments and their alleged misconduct and more on the horrific murders. "It is a very blatant attempt to distract the court and the public from how they failed to give James Crumbley a fair trial," Sharon said. "Our rules and the court's obligation to ensure due process and a fair trial and a full and fair cross-examination cannot bend to emotion, your honor. If it does, then our justice system has no integrity, and the rules mean nothing, and the Constitution means nothing." Keast said he takes issue with any allegations that the prosecutor's office prosecutes for headlines, though Sharon did not accuse him of this. "James Crumbley was convicted because of the choices he made," Keast said. "It was James Crumbley's gross negligence, it was James Crumbley's causation in this foreseeability that was the reason for his conviction." Crumbley was convicted in March 2024 of four counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with his son Ethan's Nov. 30, 2021, mass shooting at Oxford High School, which left four students — Hana St. Juliana, 14; Justin Shilling, 17; Tate Myre, 16; and Madisyn Baldwin, 16 — dead and six others and a teacher injured. Jennifer Crumbley, was convicted by a separate jury. Crumbley's conviction marked the second time in the United States a parent was convicted of manslaughter for a mass shooting carried out by his or her child; the first was of his wife, Jennifer. Matthews sentenced them both to 10-15 years in prison. Prosecutors said Crumbley acted in a grossly negligent way in storing a gun and ammunition where his son could access it and that he failed to control his child to keep him from harming others. kberg@detroitnews.com This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Oakland Co. judge considering remedy for 'likely' discovery violations in Oxford shooting case

Oakland Co. judge considering remedy for 'likely' discovery violations in Oxford shooting case #OaklandCounty #OxfordShooting #JusticeSystem

Prosecutors: Oxford shooter's dad's claims for new trial 'without merit' James Crumbley's arguments for a new trial are meritless and don't have a legal basis for the court to grant him a second trial or an acquittal, prosecutors say. The father of the Oxford High School shooter asked for a new trial in late February, in part because of agreements made with two Oxford school officials that were not given to his defense attorney and because of the court's alleged failure to properly handle the shooter's assertion of his Fifth Amendment rights. Crumbley was convicted in March 2024 of four counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with his son Ethan's Nov. 30, 2021, mass shooting at Oxford High School, which left four students — Hana St. Juliana, 14; Justin Shilling, 17; Tate Myre, 16; and Madisyn Baldwin, 16 — dead and six others and a teacher injured. His wife, Jennifer Crumbley, was convicted by a separate jury. More: James Crumbley asks for new trial, says prosecutors withheld evidence Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Shada argued in a filing Friday that Crumbley received a fair trial in front of a jury of his peers, and his motion for a new trial should be denied. "The jury determined that defendant was grossly negligent and that his gross negligence was a cause of the four deaths in the Oxford High School shooting," Shada wrote. "He received a fair trial, and none of defendant's arguments are sufficient to undermine the unanimous jury verdict." Crumbley claimed that prosecutors committed a discovery violation when they failed to turn over copies of so-called proffer agreements they made with Oxford High School counselor Shawn Hopkins and former Dean of Students Nick Ejak, who both met with the shooter and his parents the morning of the 2021 shooting. The agreements noted that prosecutors would consider the statements made by Ejak and Hopkins during meetings with prosecutors "in deciding how to resolve this investigation as it relates to your client and any charges pending against your client being prosecuted by this office." "The two proffer agreements were not required to be produced under the Court Rules, were immaterial to defendant's guilt, and were not Brady material," Shada wrote, referring to the legal term that requires prosecutors to provide all possibly exculpatory evidence to defense attorneys. Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Cheryl Matthews said during a motion hearing for Jennifer Crumbley in late January that she was "very, very" concerned about the possibility of a discovery violation as it relates to the proffer agreements. Shada argued the proffer agreements allowed prosecutors to meet with Ejak and Hopkins to evaluate them as potential witnesses. This is a standard part of trial preparation, he said, and was created at the request of their attorneys. They do not grant immunity, they do not require testimony and they do not restrict prosecutors' ability to bring charges against Ejak and Hopkins in the future. A major aspect of Crumbley's defense was arguing that he did not know about the danger his son presented, and saying the school had criminal exposure for the shooter's acts would undercut his own defense, Shada wrote. Even if the school was criminally culpable — prosecutors have said there is not enough evidence of this to bring charges — Crumbley would still be liable for his own actions and inactions. Alona Sharon, Crumbley's appellate attorney, argued in early February that Matthews failed to examine whether the shooter properly asserted his Fifth Amendment right to avoid self-incrimination, and that Crumbley's trial attorney, Mariell Lehman, failed to object when Matthews did not do this. Matthews did not allow the shooter to testify at Crumbley's trial because he asserted blanket Fifth Amendment protections. But Shada said Crumbley's Fifth Amendment claim is meritless because he abandoned the attempt to call his son as a witness. Matthews told Lehman that she could bring a motion to question the validity of the shooter's Fifth Amendment plea, but she never did so. Lehman did not file a motion to compel the shooter to testify, as Jennifer Crumbley's attorney did. "This Court cannot be faulted for trial counsel's decision not to pursue the issue," Shada wrote. "Further, Defendant could not call his son as a witness because his son had a valid claim of Fifth Amendment privilege, and — regardless of such a privilege — his son's statements would not help him as they only further solidify his guilt." Shada said Crumbley's argument that his convictions and his son's convictions are factually inconsistent does not hold weight. He said Crumbley misconstrued the theories in both cases, as the case never hinged on whether the shooter was mentally ill. Prosecutors previously argued that there is a distinction between being in mental distress and the statutory definition of mental illness. Crumbley's conviction marked the second time in the United States a parent was convicted of manslaughter for a mass shooting carried out by his or her child; the first was of his wife, Jennifer. Matthews sentenced them both to 10-15 years in prison. Prosecutors said Crumbley acted in a grossly negligent way in storing a gun and ammunition where his son could access it and that he failed to control his child to keep him from harming others. Jennifer Crumbley has filed a similar motion for a new trial or for an acquittal and is waiting on Matthews to make a ruling on the issue of the proffer agreements. Matthews denied all of her other claims. kberg@detroitnews.com This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Prosecutors: Oxford shooter's dad's claims for new trial 'without merit'

Prosecutors: Oxford shooter's dad's claims for new trial 'without merit' #OxfordShooting #JamesCrumbley #TrialJustice

6 people tried to help a man stuck in an Oxford ditch on Christmas Eve; 3 got shot Rochester Hills — Of the six Good Samaritans who stopped to help a man whose car was in a ditch on a foggy Christmas Eve in Oxford, three ended up with gunshot wounds. A fourth was shot at as she ran away from the man but was not hit. The man, later identified to be Malik Webb, allegedly pointed his gun at six people Dec. 24, 2024: Kimberly Abner and Gypsy Irelan in a rideshare parking lot after Webb ran his car into a pole and Abner asked if he was all right; Kira Wolf and her mother, Barbara Wolf, when they stopped to help him after he ran his car into the ditch; Ashley Venneste, when she pulled over to see why two cars were stopped on the side of the road; and Lon Parker, when he pulled over because he thought he saw the remains of a car crash. Webb allegedly shot 38-year-old Kira Wolf, 71-year-old Barbara Wolf and 56-year-old Parker, and shot in Venneste's direction. Barbara Wolf later died from her injuries. Police later found 27 fired shell casings around the Oxford scene, Oakland County Sheriff's Office Deputy Sean Burney said. Webb is charged with open murder, three counts of attempted murder, three counts of carjacking, two counts of felonious assault, possession of a firearm by a person not allowed to have one and 10 counts of felony firearm. He was ordered Friday to stand trial in Oakland County Circuit Court after Rochester District Court Judge Nancy Carniak found there was probable cause in the case. He is being held in the Oakland County Jail. Webb's attorney, Stephen Lynch, said "the reality is as it relates to most counts is it's probably a question of fact" for the jury to determine at a later stage. Carniak agreed that many of the issues were a question of fact for the jury. First drivers stop to help Webb Testimony on Friday described an evening that began with a minor fender-bender and escalated quickly to violence. Abner testified that around 6:15 p.m. on Christmas Eve, she was in a rideshare parking lot near the corner of M-24 and Oakwood in Oxford to drop off her grandson to his mother, Irelan. They were talking and Abner was giving Irelan Christmas presents for her children when a man later identified to be Webb struck a post in the lot, then backed up and tried to squeeze between two posts, Abner said. Abner asked the driver if he was OK. Then she said she saw the gun pointing at her and Irelan from inside the car. The two women backed away, Irelan said, and the man drove off. Minutes later, the Wolfs stopped to offer assistance to a driver police and prosecutors said was Webb, who had driven into a ditch on North Oxford Road. Barbara Wolf, who was driving, rolled down her window and yelled to see if everyone was OK. Then Webb appeared in their window, reaching his hand in to try to get into the car, Kira Wolf testified Friday. The women were panicked and began to drive away. That’s when the man started shooting into the car, Kira Wolf said, striking both women. Barbara Wolf was killed after being struck by multiple bullets. Kira Wolf, who testified from a wheelchair and said she now has severe vision issues, said she was shot in the side multiple times and twice in the arm. “What I was told is a piece of my mom’s skull hit the side of my face and went into my nose,” Kira Wolf said. “So I have broken orbital bones in the left side of my face (which impacts my vision).” More victims stop to help driver on Oxford Road A short time after Webb allegedly shot the Wolfs, Venneste, 39, testified that she saw two cars stopped on the side of the road and got out of her vehicle to look around to make sure everyone was OK. “Out of the corner of my eye, a silhouette approached me. At that moment, I had a gun to my temple,” Venneste said. “It happened really fast. It wasn’t a lot of aggression with it. I do know my head was kind of bounced off my van." Webb ultimately got into Venneste's van but couldn’t get it driving, Venneste said. She saw another person, Mackenzie Rivera, pull up to the scene and get out of her truck and Venneste yelled to her, “call 911, he has a gun.” As Rivera got back into her pickup, Webb got out of Venneste’s van and started shooting at her, she said. Venneste ran. A short time later, she heard another vehicle pulling up somewhere behind her. “Out of nowhere I heard shooting, then screaming and more shooting," Venneste said. "Then I heard silence." Webb asks for a ride to Flint The other vehicle Venneste heard turned out to be a white pickup truck driven by Lon Parker. Parker said he pulled up to the area and saw two vehicles — Webb’s in the ditch and one with two people who looked injured. He told his wife to call 911. Parker said he heard a woman — Venneste — yell that someone had a gun, and when he looked back toward his window, Webb was standing on the running board of his vehicle, his arm wrapped around the window, holding a gun. Webb told him to call 911 because people were hurt, Parker said. He said he checked to make sure his wife was calling 911 and when he again turned back to Webb, he had a gun in his face. “I knew he was drinking because I could smell the booze,” Parker said. “I could smell it pretty heavy on his breath. That’s when it dawned on me he’d probably shot those people because I have a gun in my face.”   Webb told Parker to take him to Flint, and Parker said he could do that. He started to drive slowly, Webb hanging off the side of the car.   “All I can think is he’s going to hurt my wife,” Parker said. “When somebody’s got a gun to your head, how do you get them off your vehicle without him shooting you first?” Webb asked to get in the truck, Parker said. Parker's wife said they would drop him off at Meijer. Parker said he was scared Webb was going to snap. He told him he’d stop at the upcoming stop sign. Parker said he heard Webb trying to get the locked back door open and he stepped on the gas pedal, hoping Webb would fall off the truck. He didn’t, and got mad instead, Parker said. “He said, ‘I told you I didn’t want to have to f-----g kill you,” Parker said. Parker said he told Webb he was sorry and asked him not to hurt him or his wife. Webb told him to stop the car, but Parker instead grabbed Webb’s fingers to pry them off the car and slammed on the gas. Webb fired multiple shots, one of which struck Parker in the forearm, and fell off the truck, allowing Parker to drive off. Parker had two gunshot wounds in his right forearm, an entry and exit wound, Parker said. The bullet went through his arm and the steering wheel, then into the dashboard. Oakland County deputies arrived shortly after Parker was shot, around 6:30 p.m. Though Webb originally did not listen to Deputy Timothy Ellis' commands, Ellis testified, he became compliant when a second officer arrived on the scene. He was arrested without incident. Webb allegedly told Ellis that he had wrestled an Arabic person for a pistol and that someone had tried to steal his rental car. Webb also told Ellis that someone else had shot him, and that “they killed me, I didn’t even do nothing.” kberg@detroitnews.com This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: 6 people tried to help a man stuck in an Oxford ditch on Christmas Eve; 3 got shot

6 people tried to help a man stuck in an Oxford ditch on Christmas Eve; 3 got shot #GoodSamaritans #OxfordShooting #ChristmasEve

Mom of Oxford shooter asks to remove Oakland Co. prosecutor from case: 'She cannot be trusted' The mother of the Oxford High School shooter is asking a judge to remove and disqualify the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office from her case because she allegedly "cannot be trusted" Jennifer Crumbley's attorney, Michael Dezsi, said Prosecutor Karen…

The mother of the Oxford High School shooter is asking a judge to remove and disqualify the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office from her case because she allegedly "cannot be trusted"


Jennifer Crumbley's attorney, Michael Dezsi, said Prosecutor Karen… #OxfordShooting #JusticeSystem #CourtCase

Oxford shooter asks Court of Appeals to review request for resentencing, plea withdrawal The Oxford High School shooter has asked the Michigan Court of Appeals to review his requests to withdraw his guilty plea or be resentenced after an Oakland County judge declined to do either. Ethan Crumbley's appellate attorney Jacqueline Ouvry wrote…

The Oxford High School shooter has asked the Michigan Court of Appeals to review his requests to withdraw his guilty plea or be resentenced after an Oakland County judge declined to do either.


Ethan Crumbley's appellate attorney Jacqueline Ouvry… #OxfordShooting #CourtOfAppeals #EthanCrumbley

Judge 'very' concerned about possibility of discovery violation in Oxford shooting case Pontiac — An Oakland County judge said she was "very, very" concerned about the possibility of a discovery violation when prosecutors did not disclose pretrial agreements they made with two witnesses who testified against the mother of the Oxford High…

Pontiac — An Oakland County judge said she was "very, very" concerned about the possibility of a discovery violation when prosecutors did not disclose pretrial agreements they made with two witnesses who testified against the mother of the Oxford High… #OxfordShooting #JusticeSystem #CourtCase

How prosecutors engaged in 'smear campaign' against Oxford shooter's mom: lawyer An attorney for the mother of the Oxford High School shooter alleges that prosecutors engaged in a smear campaign against the shooter's parents and knowingly violated the pretrial gag order put in place by an Oakland County judge, according to the latest…

An attorney for the mother of the Oxford High School shooter alleges that prosecutors engaged in a smear campaign against the shooter's parents and knowingly violated the pretrial gag order put in place by an Oakland County judge, according to the… #OxfordShooting #SchoolSafety #JusticeForCrumbley

AG's Oxford shooting probe moving ahead but funding lacking, Nessel says Lansing — Attorney General Dana Nessel said her office is working with the Oakland County prosecutor to better define the parameters of her office's investigation into the 2021 Oxford High School shooting. But Nessel noted her office had been hoping…

Lansing — Attorney General Dana Nessel said her office is working with the Oakland County prosecutor to better define the parameters of her office's investigation into the 2021 Oxford High School shooting.


But Nessel noted her office had been… #OxfordShooting #Investigation #AttorneyGeneral

Oakland prosecutors say Oxford shooter's mom got fair trial, shouldn't be granted appeal Oakland County prosecutors say the mother of the Oxford High School shooter received a fair trial and there is no reason she should be granted a new trial or released on bond while her appeals make their way through the legal process. Jennifer Crumbley…

Oakland County prosecutors say the mother of the Oxford High School shooter received a fair trial and there is no reason she should be granted a new trial or released on bond while her appeals make their way through the legal process.… #OxfordShooting #JusticeForVictims #InvoluntaryManslaughter

Man charged in 'vile and disturbing' Christmas Eve fatal shooting of Oxford good Samaritan A 29-year-old Flint man who allegedly gunned down a clinical psychologist and shot two others who'd stopped to help him after he drove his car into a ditch near Oxford High School Christmas Eve was charged Saturday with the woman's murder and denied bond,…

A 29-year-old Flint man who allegedly gunned down a clinical psychologist and shot two others who'd stopped to help him after he drove his car into a ditch near Oxford High School Christmas Eve was charged Saturday with the woman's murder and denied bond,… #OxfordShooting #GoodSamaritan #GunViolence

Man arrested in Oxford Twp. shooting has history of gun-related crimes, records show The suspect in the fatal Christmas Eve shooting near Oxford High School appears to be a man who, according to online records, had just been discharged from prison in July after serving time for gun-related crimes. The Detroit News is not yet…

The suspect in the fatal Christmas Eve shooting near Oxford High School appears to be a man who, according to online records, had just been discharged from prison in July after serving time for gun-related crimes.


The Detroit News is not yet identifying… #OxfordShooting #GunViolence #PublicSafety

Mom of Oxford shooter asks to be released from prison while appeal is pending The mother of the Oxford High School shooter has asked an Oakland County judge to be released from prison while her appeal and request for a new trial or a dismissal of her charges is pending. In a motion filed Thursday in Oakland County Circuit…

The mother of the Oxford High School shooter has asked an Oakland County judge to be released from prison while her appeal and request for a new trial or a dismissal of her charges is pending.


In a motion filed Thursday in Oakland County Circuit… #OxfordShooting #JusticeForCrumbley #LegalAppeal

Ethan Crumbley Update: Oxford School Shooter Can't Change Plea

Ethan Crumbley Update: Oxford School Shooter Can't Change Plea

A judge denied Ethan Crumbley's requests to withdraw his guilty pleas and be resentenced for the ...

#ethancrumbley #oxfordshooting #schoolshootings #justice #legalnews

Judge denies Oxford shooter’s request for new sentence, to withdraw guilty plea An Oakland County judge has denied the Oxford High School shooter’s request for resentencing and to withdraw his guilty plea. Appellate attorneys for Ethan Crumbley, who killed four students and injured six others and a teacher at a shooting at Oxford…

An Oakland County judge has denied the Oxford High School shooter’s request for resentencing and to withdraw his guilty plea.


Appellate attorneys for Ethan Crumbley, who killed four students and injured six others and a teacher at a shooting at Oxford… #OxfordShooting #EthanCrumbley #GuiltyPlea

Oakland County selects firm to review emergency response to Oxford attack Oakland County officials have chosen the New York-based risk management firm Guidepost Solutions to conduct an independent review of the emergency response to the Oxford High School shooting. Oakland County executive Dave Coulter on Monday announced…

Oakland County officials have chosen the New York-based risk management firm Guidepost Solutions to conduct an independent review of the emergency response to the Oxford High School shooting.


Oakland County executive Dave Coulter on Monday… #OaklandCounty #OxfordShooting #EmergencyResponse