PONTIAC, Mich. (WXYZ) — Very few words were said as Ethan Crumbley pleaded guilty to all 24 counts against him in the deadly shooting at Oxford High School, waiving his right to a trial.
It's a relief to parents like Linda Watson.
“It was really, really hard to hear," Watson said of the hearing Monday. "It was hard to hear, hard to see that kid.”
Watson’s son Aidan, an Oxford student, was in the hallway that day and witnessed the attack. He was shot in the leg as he ran to safety.
“The day of it was incredibly difficult for him. He went into the hallway because he heard something and what he ended up seeing, no kid should see,” Linda Watson said. "He saw another kid die before he ran to his room and got shot, and then he and a friend of his ran out and he called me and said 'Mom, help me. I've been shot. There’s a school shooter.'”
Aidan and his family were in the courtroom as Crumbley admitted everything he was accused of, even going further to specify his father’s role in purchasing the firearm, saying he asked his father to buy the gun and gave him money to purchase it.
That revelation could potentially lead to further federal charges against James Crumbley. When someone purchases a firearm, they fill out a form from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to confirm that they, the buyer, are purchasing the gun for themselves. Lying and saying otherwise is a federal crime.
“It carries serious weight behind it. There’s a reason that those kind of purchases are illegal,” said retired ATF Supervisory Special Agent Donald Dawkins.
Dawkins says this kind of purchase is called a straw purchase, which is a federal felony.
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald declined to speak about the parents' trial when asked if federal charges could be coming, but said "we are in constant communication and working cooperatively with our federal counterparts.”
“It's a straw purchase on face value it is," Dawkins said. "Sometimes, that flies because it’s in a home, but it still has to be secured. He bought it for his son. It still has to be secured, though, and that’s ultimately going to be the biggest factor in this.”
McDonald says these admissions were included in the guilty plea to show the act was planned and premeditated.
Ethan Crumbley also admitted during the hearing that the gun was not locked in the home, contradicting what his father claims. However, former federal prosecutor Mark Chutkow says those statements made by Ethan Crumbley Monday can’t be used in the case against the parents.
“His statements in a plea hearing itself cannot be used against the parents at their trial because they have the right of confrontation, in other words to cross-examine him,” Chutkow said.
However, it is possible Ethan Crumbley could be called to testify these statements during his parents' trial.
"It’s a potential," Chutkow said of Ethan Crumbley testifying. "He will be subject to savage cross-examination just based on the ruthlessness of his crimes, but that’s a calculation the prosecution is going to have to make.”
"Do you think this admission in court today by Ethan Crumbley might make the parents more likely to reach a plea agreement or plead guilty in their case?" 7 Action News reporter Brett Kast asked.
"It’s really unclear," Chutkow responded. "I don't know what they’re thinking, but certainly it has to give them pause.”
Although Ethan Crumbley won't stand trial, he still has another hearing and sentencing where due to his age, he could receive less than life without parole. Watson hopes he gets the strongest sentence possible, knowing more court hearings and proceedings loom ahead.
“It's incredibly sad and makes you so angry," Watson said of Monday's hearing. "At the same time, it’s not over."
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