The manhunt for the parents of alleged Michigan school shooter Ethan Crumbley has ended in a double arrest. Police say James Crumbley and Jennifer Crumbley were arrested in Detroit early Saturday morning, per CNN. As previously reported, authorities began searching for the couple after they failed to appear at their Friday afternoon arraignment. They are facing four counts of involuntary manslaughter charges.
Crumbleys Face Arraignment
The court held their arraignment on Saturday at some point following their arrest. Both James and Jennifer met with the judge, their attorneys and prosecutor by video conference while alone and in separate rooms. James and Jennifer pled not guilty to the charges.
The judge set the bond for each parent at $500,000 at the request of Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald. Karen argued that the parents “attempts to hide their location” and withdrawal of $4,000 from an ATM machine on Friday as reasons for the bond amount.
Both parents remained largely quiet during the arraignment besides saying they understood the charge and setting their plea. Jennifer appeared to sob in between words.
Prior to the pleas, attorneys representing the parents said they “fully intended” to turn themselves in “first thing this morning for arraignment.”
Authorities found Jennifer and James hiding out on the first floor of what appears to be a warehouse. Someone tipped police about their car being nearby. Police found them nearly 40 miles south from their Oxford home. Detroit Police Chief James White spoke at a Saturday news conference saying the Crumbleys were “very distressed” after their capture.
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Why They’re Being Charged
The county prosecutor charged the couple in connection to Tuesday’s shooting, carried out by their 15-year-old son. Prosecutors say the parents bought the gun used in the Oxford school shooting and gave Ethan free access to it. They also failed to remove their son from school after the school presented them with alarming actions.
First, Jennifer didn’t respond to school officials on Monday after they contacted her about Ethan searching ammunition on his phone. Instead, Jennifer texted her son that day saying “LOL I’m not mad at you. You have to learn not to get caught.”
Then, on Tuesday, another teacher spotted Ethan drawing a semiautomatic handgun, a bullet, person shot and bleeding and a laughing emoji. Along with the pictures, Ethan included cryptic wording about blood, his thoughts and life, the world and death. He later altered the drawing by scratching out elements prior to a meeting with his parents and the school counselor. His parents refused to pull him out of school and he returned to class.
Later that day, Ethan shot and killed four students and injured seven people. The high school student is facing charges as an adult for terrorism, murder and other counts.
This is a developing story.
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