Oxford police and prosecutor face criticism for allowing parents of school gunman to escape

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The Oakland County District Attorney and local law enforcement came under fire after the parents of the Oxford High School shooting suspect left the city after the shooting.

James and Jennifer Crumbley were reportedly labeled “fugitives” by county officials after leaving Oxford. Police had tried to arrest the couple for manslaughter after their son, Ethan Crumbley, 15, allegedly killed four students in a mass shooting.

Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald announced the charges and issued an arrest warrant for the couple, but Crumbley’s lawyers insisted they were not on the run, although they haven’t really spoken to them.

“On Thursday evening, we reached out to the Oakland County District Attorney to discuss this case and to advise him that James and Jennifer Crumbley will be showing up for trial,” a statement from attorneys Shannon Smith and Mariell read. Lehman. “They are not running away from law enforcement despite recent media comments.”

Oakland County prosecution attorney Karen McDonald can be seen at a press conference after charges were laid against Ethan Crumbley’s parents. Scott Olson / Getty

The couple are said to have left Oxford overnight for safety’s sake, their lawyer added, but it is not clear whether their lawyers knew where they had gone. The Crumbleys had turned off their cellphones and allegedly withdrawn $ 4,000 in cash from their bank account, officials told CNN.

As the hours passed and no sign of the parents could be found, a massive response from law enforcement ensued in an effort to locate the couple. This included the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), many local police units, and the US Marshals.

On social networks and the media, criticism has been leveled against the prosecutor’s office as well as the manhunt of the police. Many have wondered how the parents of a suspected school gunman could evade detection for so long.

Journalist Tariq Nasheed appeared to express doubts about the parents’ story, tweeting “now the parents of the terrorist shooting the school are ‘missing’.”

Now the parents of the terrorist who shoots the school are “missing”.

??

Cops Track Parents Of Oxford Shooting Suspect As Lawyer Insists They Didn’t Leak https://t.co/PYI0PVoE89

– Tariq Nasheed (@tariqnasheed) December 3, 2021

NBC News national security contributor Frank Figliuzzi asked if the investigation could “be further messed up.” He also slammed Karen McDonald after she held a press conference announcing charges against the Crumbleys despite the ongoing manhunt.

Figliuzzi asked why the charges against the parents were announced before their detention.

Parents on the run. Can this still be fucked up? DA announced charges before the guard ?? Oxford High shooting: Police search parents of Michigan high school gunman after they were charged with crimes related to fatal rampage, prosecutor says – CNN https://t.co/b1BZ5cKFrJ

– Frank Figliuzzi (@ FrankFigliuzzi1) December 3, 2021

Although McDonald’s defended his actions, the press conference was also harshly criticized by CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin.

Why did Oakland County prosecutors hold a press conference to announce charges against the parents before their arrest? They let the parents flee. Blatant incompetence

– Jeffrey Toobin (@JeffreyToobin) December 4, 2021

Additionally, Andrew McCabe, CNN’s senior law enforcement analyst, told Anderson Cooper 360 that “press conferences only take place after people are detained.”

“It’s puzzling that [prosecutors] would do something like that without having already got their hands on these two, ”McCabe continued.

Another tweet from author and spiritualist Ariaa Jaeger noted the apparent lack of coordination from the FBI, which lost track of the Crumbleys just months after a nationwide manhunt for Brian Laundrie, a suspect in the murder of his fiancée Gabby Petito. Jaeger asked if anyone else thought the desk was “completely broken”.

Is it me or is the FBI completely broke? They have lost Brian Laundrie now they have lost the parents of the Oxford shooters. #crumbley

– Ariaa Jaeger (@AriaaJaeger) December 3, 2021

Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard, when asked if the Crumbley parents were missing, simply replied “correct”.

Newsweek has contacted the Oakland County District Attorney’s Office for comment.

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