Kriti Mehrotra
While there’s no denying that Ethan Crumbley orchestrated the brutal Oxford High School mass shooting of November 30, 2021, both his parents have actually since been deemed culpable too. This much is explored in ABC News/Hulu’s ‘Sins of the Parents: The Crumbley Trials,’ a documentary chronicling the events leading up to the atrocious day as well as the parents’ hand in the same.
Who Are Jennifer and James Crumbley?
It was back in September 2005 that Clarkston native Jennifer (aka Jehn) tied the knot with James in a beautiful ceremony on a Florida beach, just for them to soon find themselves in trouble. The truth is the latter was soon brought into court for passing bad checks and driving with a suspended license, with his wife being charged with the former too – then, they were also found guilty of a DUI.
However, things soon turned upside down for Jehn and James as they welcomed Ethan into their world in 2006 before ultimately relocating to Oxford in the hopes of providing him with a good life. They did expand their family further, but in the form of adorable pets rather than children; they had a Great Pyrenees, a wolfish white rescue dog, two cats (one specifically their son’s), plus a chinchilla.
But alas, despite Jehn and James having a rather idealistic home life as well as a stable income – she was a real estate agent turned social-media assistant turned marketing director, whereas he cycled through a few jobs – they did raise eyebrows in their neighborhood. According to reports, they often lit up firecrackers in their yard in the summer, he was so super friendly it seemed like he was always high, plus they rarely participated in their local social life. There’s also the fact that whenever they went on weekend trips and asked neighbors to care for their pets, the latter almost always found their place to be a complete mess, making them wonder how they even cared for Ethan.
However, Jehn and James’ relationship took a turn for the worse during the pandemic, especially as he ended up losing his telemarking job and had to try to make ends meet by working for DoorDash. As per records, they were not only behind house payments but were also fighting a lot – fighters that neighbors as well as co-workers could hear even through closed doors. It was around this time that Ethan started texting his working mother he was hearing things; he came across as genuinely afraid and lonely despite his father often being at home during this period – a week later, it was as if he was hallucinating.
Little did the couple know their son would have a meltdown within a day, yet they didn’t take him to any doctor or specialist, even when he later tried to talk to them about the extent of the voices in his head. Though he was telling a close friend every single thing, all the while indicating Jehn “makes everyone feel like shit,” whereas James simply told him to “suck it up.” It was evident Ethan was not mentally well, especially in school as he spent most of his time doodling, playing video games, or watching shooting clips, but instead of caring for him in a way that would’ve helped, they took him to a shooting range the Sunday after Thanksgiving.
Nevertheless, per their narrative, neither Jehn nor James had any idea that 15-year-old Ethan would end up opening fire inside his school on November 30, 2021, killing four people. They then found themselves moving to a hotel as their home became a crime scene, just for it to uncover further evidence of their negligence towards their son plus a lot more. The couple thus holed up in a warehouse studio apartment in Detroit in the hopes of avoiding authorities, yet they were arrested from there just a short while later. They had four burner phones, four gift cards, ten credit cards, plus $6,600 in cash upon cleaning Ethan’s bank account.
Jennifer and James Crumbley Are Now Behind Bars
According to official records, Jehn and James were set on fleeing so as to avoid prosecution of any kind, with the former even texting her friend that “her son’s destiny is done and she has to take care of herself.” In the end, in early December 2021, they were both charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter for their failure to secure the gun Crumbley used in the shooting – the weapon belonged to the patriarch. This was the very first time in US history that a child’s parents were indicted with almost equial culpability for a mass school shooting carried out by their child, then in 2024, they became the first parents to be convicted of it.
It was on February 6, 2024, that an unbiased jury found John guilty as charged, following which James received the same verdict after his separate trial’s conclusion on March 14, 2024. Therefore, on April 9, 2024, in a combined sentence hearing, they were given the maximum sentence of 15 years behind bars with the possibility of parole after 10. Yet, before this term was announced, they both addressed the court.
“I sit here today to express my deepest sorrows for the families of Hana, Tate, Madisyn, Justin and to all those affected on November 30, 2021,” Jennifer said before adding she was there “not to ask for your forgiveness, as I know it may be beyond reach, but to express my sincerest apologies for the pain that has been caused. I will be in my own internal prison for the rest of my life.”
As for James, he said, “I want to say I can’t imagine the pain and agony for the families … that have lost their children and what they’re experiencing and what they’re going through… I cannot express how much I wish that I had known what was going on with (Ethan) or what was going to happen, because I absolutely would have done a lot of things differently.” So today, they’re awaiting transfer to a state correctional facility. So today, while the 46-year-old mother is incarcerated at the Huron Valley Women’s Correctional Facility, her 48-year-old husband is serving his time at the Charles Egeler Reception & Guidance Center – they’ll be eligible for parole in late 2031.
Read More: Ethan Crumbley: Where is the School Shooter Now?
