Crumbley's Argue Prosecutors Portrayed Them As 'Bad Parents': Report

ROCHESTER HILLS, MI — Jennifer and James Crumbley asked again for a lower bond, saying prosecutors unfairly portrayed them as bad parents, according to a Detroit Free Press report, citing a Tuesday court filing.

The couple was each charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter after authorities said their son opened fire at Oxford High School on Nov. 30, killing four students and wounding seven other people.

Prosecutors argued during the couple's preliminary exam that each parent ignored numerous disturbing warning signs from their son leading up to the deadly attack on Nov. 30. In one instance, prosecutors said James told his son to "suck it up" when he asked his dad to take him to a doctor.

In asking the court again to lower the couple's bond from $500,000 to $100,000, defense lawyers maintained the couple did not know their son would carry out a school shooting, and reiterated in the court filing the parents do not pose a flight risk, the report said.

"No one expected that the shooter could be or would be homicidal," defense lawyers argued in a late Tuesday court filing. "The media contains so much histrionic and emotional information that many of the real facts of this case have been lost upon the public."

As prosecutors revealed text messages they said their son exchanged with his friend, saying his parents would not help him with his mental health problems as well as journal excerpts essentially blaming his parents for the planned attack, defense lawyers argued in the court filing there's no proof of those claims, the report said.

"There is no evidence that that the school shooter did ask his parents to go to a doctor, nor did he ever ask," defense lawyers argued in the court filing. "While the prosecution selected certain pieces of information to portray them as bad and uncaring parents, after cross-examination regarding these topics, the testimony revealed there was more to each situation than the prosecution intended to present."

Jennifer and James Crumbley were expected back in court on April 19, when their lawyers were expected to argue for a lower bond. The couple was already once denied a lower bond by a Rochester Hills judge.

The couple's son remains in the Oakland County Jail after he was charged with four counts of premeditated murder and terrorism. He waived his preliminary exam and will go straight to trial after pleading insanity through his lawyer. An Oakland County judge also denied his request to be moved to a youth facility.

Read the full story about the defense's court filing at the Detroit Free Press