Teen pleads guilty to terrorism and murder in deadly Michigan high school shooting

A teen accused of killing four students and injuring seven others after he opened fire at a Michigan high school last year pleaded guilty to all charges against him on Monday. 

Ethan Crumbly, 16, pleaded guilty to one count of terrorism causing death, four counts of first-degree murder, and 19 other charges related to the mass shooting at Oxford High School on November 30, 2021. 

“We are not aware of any other case anywhere in the country where a mass shooter has been convicted of terrorism on state charges,” Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said. “No one has ever been convicted of similar charges under these circumstances, an act of targeted violence like this.”

The teen is facing up to life in prison without parole for several of the charges. 

During the trial, Crumbley also confirmed that he got the gun from an unlocked container in his home, hid it in his backpack, and then used it at school to shoot at his classmates. 

His parents, who are being charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter related to the shooting, are scheduled to be tried in January. According to prosecutors, they have their son easy access to a gun and ignored signs that their son was a threat before the shooting. 

Several families of the victims and the survivors of the shooting were in court during Crumbley’s guilty plea. 

“It was tough to see him for the first time in person,” said Meghan Gregory, mother of survivor Keegan Gregory.

“Just getting the guilty plea alone, I know for my own child, I think that lifted a thousand pounds off his chest so he does not have to stand there and testify and relive it again,” she said.