OXFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. — The superintendent of a Michigan school district where a mass shooting claimed the lives of four students said that no discipline was necessary for the teen who was called to his high school office hours before he opened fire.
Tim Throne, superintendent of Oxford Community Schools, addressed community members in a video message posted Thursday, the Detroit Free Press reported.
In the video, Throne said that Ethan Crumbley, 15, did not have a disciplinary record at Oxford High School, where four students were killed and seven others were injured. The video confirmed the comments of Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard, who said Wednesday that the suspect had met with high school officials the day before and morning of the shooting to discuss his behavior.
“There’s just been a lot of talk about the student that was apprehended, that he was called up to the office and all that kind of stuff,” Throne said in the 12-minute message. “No discipline was warranted. There are no discipline records at the high school. Yes, this student did have contact with our front office. And yes, his parents were on campus.”
Throne added that he could not comment further about Crumbley.
Thorne also acknowledged that Crumbley’s parents were at Oxford High School on Tuesday, the day of the shooting, the Free Press reported.
Throne said Oxford High School looks like a “war zone” and will not be ready to reopen for weeks, according to the video.
“To say that I am still in shock and numb is probably an understatement,” Throne said in the video.
Crumbley pleaded not guilty on Wednesday during a virtual appearance to charges including first-degree murder and terrorism causing death. A judge ordered him held without bond ahead of his trial. Crumbley is being charged as an adult.
The semi-automatic gun Crumbley used, 9mm Sig Sauer SP, was purchased legally by his father last week, investigators said.
Earlier Thursday, Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald repeated her criticism of Crumbley’s parents, saying their actions went “far beyond negligence” and that a charging decision would come by Friday, The Associated Press reported.
“The parents were the only individuals in the position to know the access to weapons,” McDonald said. The gun “seems to have been just freely available to that individual.”
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Throne said in the video that he was about to visit with the first of the parents of the deceased students.
“I’ll be doing that three more times,” he said.
The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office identified the slain students as Hana St. Juliana, 14; Tate Myre, 16; Madisyn Baldwin, 17; and Justin Shilling, 17. Seven other people between the ages of 14 and 47 were also injured, officials said.
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