Trial of Jennifer Crumbley, mother of Oxford High School shooter, continues with fifth day of testimony
(CBS DETROIT) - The trial of Jennifer Crumbley, the mother of the Oxford High School shooter, continued Wednesday with the fifth day of testimony.
Jennifer Crumbley told detective: "Lives were lost today, and he's going to have to suffer."
Sam Marzban, a lieutenant for the Oakland County Sheriff's Office who worked the Oxford High School shooting, was the first person to testify.
He testified about responding to the school, helping evacuate students and identifying two students that were killed.
Marzban also discussed looking at the shooter's cell phone and seeing messages he received about an hour after the shooting began.
His mother sent her son a text that said, "Ethan don't do it," and a message from his father that said, "Ethan call me now."
In addition, Marzban said after a search warrant was authorized and he was talking with the parents at the family's home, Jennifer Crumbley had told him, "Lives were lost today, and he's going to have to suffer," referring to her son.
Locating the Crumbley parents in Detroit after the shooting
After Marzban, David Hendrick, a former detective sergeant for the Oakland County Sheriff's Office, testified about how authorities found Jennifer and James Crumbley in an industrial building with studios in Detroit on Dec. 3.
They located the parents after their vehicle was found in the building's parking lot. Jennifer Crumbley's friend had a studio in this building.
Their other vehicle was found at an extended-stay hotel in Auburn Hills earlier that same day.
After they were found, the parents were taken into custody since charges had been issued.
Business owner sees Crumbley's vehicle, calls 911
Luke Kirtley, the owner of a coffee roasting company in Detroit called Coffee House, which was located in the same building where the Crumbley parents were found, testified.
He said that when switching his cars in the parking lot, he noticed a vehicle backed into a spot in the far corner and recognized the vehicle.
Kirtley referred to the poster about the vehicle wanted and went to check the license plate. When he did this, he said he saw a woman sitting near the vehicle, but she didn't react, and he wasn't sure if she had noticed him.
After that, he went back inside and called 911.
Jennifer Crumbley found lying on mattress in Detroit studio
David Shaw, an officer on the Detroit Police Department's SWAT team, testified next.
He was called to the industrial building after the Crumbley vehicle was seen in the parking lot.
His team searched the first, second and third floors before his supervisor was told that the parents were supposed to be in a room on the first floor.
Shaw said that his team was in the building for 60 to 90 minutes before they entered suite 130, where they found James and Jennifer Crumbley lying on a mattress. Video footage of them finding the parents and taking them into custody was shown during Shaw's testimony.
Deleted messages between Jennifer Crumbley and a friend
Brian Meloche, a friend of Jennifer and James Crumbley, also testified on Wednesday. Meloche works as a captain at a fire department but knew Jennifer Crumbley from high school.
Meloche said that he had never met the shooter, but Jennifer Crumbley had told him that one of his friends had killed himself, but he later learned this wasn't true.
On the day of the shooting, Jennifer Crumbley messaged Meloche and told him that she had to go to her son's school for a meeting and that she was afraid he might do something dumb.
Meloche responded by asking Jennifer Crumbley where the firearm she bought for her son was. The mother told Meloche that the gun was in her vehicle, and he told her that it should not be there.
He testified that he learned about the shooting later that day from watching the news.
The prosecution and the defense got into an argument about a 77-page exhibit, causing a break in court. The exhibit includes the messages sent between Jennifer Crumbley and Meloche.
Defense attorney Shannon Smith said they only received eight pages of the exhibit, while the prosecution says they have had the evidence for two years.
Oakland County Judge Cheryl Matthews gave Smith time to review the exhibit.
Heated exchange leads to jury finding out about extramarital affair
During Smith's cross-examination of Meloche, the prosecution objected, pointing out that the defense was getting close to a matter that the judge had already been excluded from evidence.
The jury was taken out of the courtroom while the attorneys had a heated exchange with the judge. At that time, the prosecution revealed that Meloche had an affair with Jennifer Crumbley, and argued that Smith's questioning would open the door for the prosecution to bring the matter up to the jury.
Jennifer Crumbley told Matthews that she did not mind the jury hearing about her affair. Matthews brought the jury back in and allowed questioning about the affair to proceed.
Meloche testified Wednesday that from his first interview with law enforcement, he told police that he had an extramarital affair and that his relationship with Jennifer Crumbley involved a sexual relationship.
Recap of fourth day of testimony in trial of Jennifer Crumbley
Four people testified on Tuesday. This included the former dean of students at Oxford High School, Nicholas Ejak, who testified that he did not have "reasonable suspicion" to search the shooter's backpack on the day of the school shooting, where four students were killed and several others were injured.
In addition, Jennifer Crumbley's former boss at the real estate company where she worked was called to testify, and he said that if the mother had asked to leave work to get her son mental health counseling, he wouldn't have had a problem with that.
A former coworker also testified and said that the mother told her that the shooter had been locked out of the house after an argument. Jennifer Crumbley also told that coworker that her son was "hearing things" in the house.
Jennifer and James Crumbley are charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection to the mass shooting where their son killed four students, Justin Shilling, Madisyn Baldwin, Tate Myre, and Hana St. Juliana, and injured seven other people on Nov. 30, 2021.
The parents are accused of buying their son a gun, which was used during the Oxford High School shooting, and not getting him the mental health help that he needed.
Their son was sentenced to life in prison without parole in December 2023.
The prosecution expects to call 20-25 people to testify in the trial.
The sixth day of testimony takes place at 9 a.m. Thursday.
