Friday’s prosecutor’s office tried to detain the parents of a shooting suspect at an Oxford school with a $ 500,000 deposit, saying they couldn’t trust the couple not escaping given their actions after the November massacre. Persuaded the official.
Two days after the shooting, James and Jennifer Cranby left their home in Auckland County, bought four burner phones, emptied their son’s bank account, spent the night at the hotel, and then abandoned, according to prosecutors. I hid in the building that became. In Detroit, police found them crouching on a mattress with $ 6,600 in cash.
Prosecutors claim that almost half of the money belongs to his son, and Crumbles withdrew $ 3,000 from his teenager’s account, leaving 99 cents.
The prosecution asked a friend to bring vodka and orange juice while hiding, and said the couple had only left the building to hide their car because of the smoke.
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald has disclosed these details to prevent Crumbles from withdrawing bonds to $ 100,000 in cash.
Crumbleys faced unwilling manslaughter in a shooting, killing four students and injuring seven, including a teacher. The prosecution said the couple had bought a gun that the couple used to shoot and kill the school to their son. They said they bought an early teenage Christmas gift four days before the shooting on November 30th.
Crumbleys lawyers argued that the client evacuated to Detroit after the shooting was threatened with murder in Oakland County, and his home address was on the Internet and he was planning to withdraw. .. Crumbleys also said the couple bought a burner phone because police had a cell phone after the shooting.
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McDonald’s argued that when he was arrested in Detroit, the couple showed no signs of surrender because they found $ 6,600 in cash, four burner phones, ten credit cards, and four gift cards. Did. They also did not return the call of their lawyer, she said.
“These are not the actions of individuals who want to turn themselves back,” McDonald said. “There was a police station across from the hotel … they didn’t bend down. They fled to another town, and nothing prevented them from staying in Oakland County.”
McDonald’s also claimed that Crumbles had nothing to do with Michigan-James and Jennifer Crumbles’ family are in Florida-that makes them even more risky to fly. She said the Crumbles have been in contact with Florida families since the shooting and are in the process of selling their homes and horses.
The defense said it was unsafe for Crumbles to live in Oakland County and had to sell their homes.
At the hearing, defendant lawyer Mariel Lehman also accused the prosecution of disclosing his mother’s personal information. Specifically, she was having an affair because her son was out of control.
Lehman called the allegations of the case “misleading” and “irrelevant,” and accused the prosecution of using the allegations to create conflicts between spouses.
“There is no conflict,” Lehman said. “We explained and discussed the issue of extramarital relations with our clients, but it’s okay.”
Lehman also disputed the prosecution’s allegations that Crumble did not properly secure the gun, alleging that Ethan Cranby argued that he could not find the gun in his diary.
“In Ethan’s diary, he clearly states that he must find a place where his father hid his firearms,” Lehman said.
Lehman also said his parents were unaware that his son was abusing animals, and he had the bird’s head under his bed for six months, as the prosecutor claimed. Claimed not to know.
“His parents were completely unaware of any nasty behavior Ethan had done. They didn’t know the bird’s head,” Lehman added.
If the prosecution pays attention to his son, receives mental health treatment, and informs school officials that he bought a gun when he called his parents to report the boy’s nasty behavior, his parents would prevent the slaughter. Claims to have been able. On the day of the shooting, Ethan Cranby had a picture of the gun and the words “I can’t stop thinking. Help me” on a piece of math paper.
Ethan Cranby faces terrorism and first-class murder, which could lead to life imprisonment if convicted.
Contact Tresa Baldas: [email protected]
This article was originally published in Detroit Free Press: Prosecutor: Oxford school shooting parents asked for vodka while hiding