James Crumbley's Request For New Trial Lacks Merit, Oakland County Prosecutors Say

ROCHESTER HILLS, MI — Oakland County prosecutors asked a judge to deny James Crumbley a new trial, saying his request is "without merit," according to local news reports.

Crumbley's lawyer, Alona Sharon, argues he did not get a fair trial because prosecutors did not share proffer agreements they signed with school officials for their testimony at his trial.

She claimed the school officials, former Oxford High School dean Nick Ejak and then-Oxford counselor Shawn Hopkins, would not have testified during Crumbley's trial without the proffer agreement.

Oakland County Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Shada said the agreements did not provide the school officials immunity from their testimony, WDIV reports.

"The jury determined that defendant was grossly negligent and that his gross negligence was a cause of the four deaths in the Oxford High School shooting," Shada wrote. "He received a fair trial, and none of defendant's arguments are sufficient to undermine the unanimous jury verdict."

Moreover, prosecutors said they weren't required to share the agreements and that Crumbley was convicted based on his actions and not what Ejak and Hopkins said.

Sharon also argues that Crumbley had ineffective legal counsel and questioned whether the judge thoroughly analyzed the shooter's right to invoke the Fifth Amendment. She argued Ethan couldn't further incriminate himself since he had already pleaded guilty to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Shada said that claim is "meritless" because James did not attempt to call his son as a witness, the Detroit news reports.

"This Court cannot be faulted for trial counsel's decision not to pursue the issue," Shada wrote. "Further, Defendant could not call his son as a witness because his son had a valid claim of Fifth Amendment privilege, and — regardless of such a privilege — his son's statements would not help him as they only further solidify his guilt."

James Crumbley, was convicted of four counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the deadly Oxford school shooting and was also sentenced to 10-15 years in prison. His wife, Jennifer Crumbley, was also convicted on the same charges and received the same sentence.

Ethan Crumbley, the couple's son, did not testify at either of his parents' trials. He was sentenced to life in prison for multiple charges, including murder and terrorism for the deadly carrying out the deadly shooting.

The filing from prosecutors comes just after an Oakland County judge denied a motion from Jennifer Crumbley to remove the county's prosecutor from her case. Like her husband, Jennifer has also appealed her conviction and wants a new trial.

The four children killed in the shooting were: Hana St. Juliana, 14; Justin Shilling, 17; Tate Myre, 16; and Madisyn Baldwin, 16.

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