Ethan Crumbley Sentencing Date Announced; Expert Says Crumbley Was Not Mentally Ill

PONTIAC, MI — An Oakland County judge set two dates for Ethan Crumbley during Friday morning's hearing: One to determine if an exception should be made to allow parole on a life sentence for murdering four of his Oxford High School classmates in 2021, and an actual sentencing date.

Judge Kwame Rowe will decide on Sept. 29 whether to send Crumbley to prison for the rest of his life without parole, which defense lawyers say is too harsh. The sentence will be pronounced in a Dec. 8 proceeding.

Friday was the last and final hearing in a Pontiac courtroom, where lawyers argued whether Crumbley should spend the rest of his life in prison.

Prosecutors shared numerous text messages and journal writings depicting Crumbley's desire to kill, while defense lawyers largely argued Crumbley suffers from psychosis and hallucinations and should have a chance at parole.

On the final day of testimony, Lisa Anacker, a forensic psychiatry specialist said Crumbley does not suffer from hallucinations or enter periods of psychosis after conducting a series of interviews with the teen

"I took into account what the defendant told me. But I also looked at the objective data in the case," Anacker said. "For example, that includes videos of the defendant after the shooting in the police sub-station. In those videos, he wasn't exhibiting signs of psychosis."

"He's communicating clearly, calmly, and appears collected, suggesting a reality-oriented processing," Anacker added.

Psychologist Colin King, however, testified earlier in the hearing that Crumbley was suffering from psychosis, particularly in a video that showed Crumbley breaking down in the jail and saying "God, why didn't you stop it?"

Defense attorney Paulette Loftin said Crumbley should have the opportunity after the minimum sentence to prove he can be rehabilitated by attending therapy classes and learning to control his behavior while in prison.

"It is putting the ball in his court and it is making someone else make the decision when they have those decades of records," Loftin said.

In her closing argument, Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said Crumbley gunned down four classmates "solely for the pleasure of killing, and to increase the body count to try to make himself famous."

"It wasn't impulsive, and their expert (for the defense) even acknowledges that," McDonald added. "He didn't want anything from his victims, your honor; it wasn't settling a score. He didn't even know them, and the people he killed were also juveniles."

Even though Crumbley, 17, pleaded guilty to 24 counts, including four counts of premeditated murder, he's entitled to what's known as a Miller hearing because he's a minor and was charged as an adult.

The hearing allows for a judge to review Crumbley's age to determine whether he can face life in prison without the possibility of parole, since a first-degree murder conviction typically brings an automatic life prison sentence in Michigan.

If Oakland County Circuit Judge Kwame Rowe decides the life without parole provision is too harsh, then he must sentence Crumbley to a minimum of 25 to 40 years and a maximum of at least 60 years.

So if Crumbley does not receive a life in prison without parole, the earliest he can ask for release would be in 25 years. Life with parole is not an option for murder cases under Michigan law.

The four students killed in the shooting were 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana, 16-year-old Tate Myre, 17-year-old Madisyn Baldwin and 17-year-old Justin Shilling.

Ethan's parents, Jennifer and James Crumbley, were each charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection to the deadly school shooting, making them the first parents ever charged in connection to a school shooting.

The Michigan Supreme Court is fielding an appeal from the couple to have the case thrown out after an Oakland County Judge ruled in March both parents can face trial on charges in connection to the deadly school shooting.