Ex-Oxford School Board Leaders Say District Didn't Follow Safety Policies Before Shooting

OXFORD, MI — Two former Oxford School District board members blasted school officials during a Monday news conference, accusing them of ignoring their own threat assessment playbook leading up to the deadly school shooting.

Former Oxford school board President Tom Donnelly and treasurer Korey Bailey argued Monday that under the district's policy, school officials should have removed Ethan Crumbley from the school after seeing the words, "The thoughts won't stop, help me," on his homework assignment.

Donnelly and Bailey also argued Crumbley should have been sent home a day before the shooting as well, after a teacher caught him searching ammunition on his phone.

Both instances were grounds for removal under the district's policy, which trains teams to look for early warning signs, such as expressions of violence in writings and drawings, but officials "never thought of putting a team together" to conduct a threat assessment, Donnelly said.

"We didn't know what we didn't know," Donnelly said. "We never activated the team, we never did drills."

The pair also believes that gunman Ethan Crumbley was given a SAEBRS test (Social, Academic, and Emotional Behavior Risk Screener), which is a student screening test that identifies those who are at risk for social-emotional behavior problems. They questioned if school officials ever reviewed those 2020 and 2021 results and could have acted on them.

Oxford school officials told Patch they are committed to the safety of their students and staff.

"The third-party review of the events leading up to, during and following Nov. 30, 2021, as reported at our last board meeting, has since seen increased participation of key stakeholders," President of the Oxford Community Schools Board of Education Dan D’Alessandro said.

"The review will help us all understand the facts and have the transparency and accountability we all deserve. We ask the public to allow this important review process to take place so the facts can be brought to light in a clear, accurate, and impartial manner," he added.

A spokesperson from the Giarmarco, Mullins & Horton, P.C. law confirmed to Patch that the district has had appropriate safety policies in place since 2004 and that some staff received threat assessment training prior to the shooting. However, the law firm also said some of Donnelly's allegations were a misunderstanding of facts.

"The details regarding the training and use of threat assessment procedures in advance of the Nov. 30 tragedy will be discussed at length by members of the staff who implemented the policies prior to Nov. 30, 2021," the law firm said. "As in previous depositions, the District will fully disclose all relevant facts and procedures in the forthcoming legal proceedings."

Donnelly and Bailey resigned from the school board in September after they said the district wasn't being transparent enough with the grieving community.

"All we experienced was constant stalling," Donnelly said. "Were the processes followed? Too many things were done against the board’s interests. Non-district voices were making too many decisions from the insurance company."

Furthermore, the pair said they were also told by "non-district voices" that "coming forward would bankrupt the district and tear apart the community."

The two did not identify who the "non-district voices" were, as Attorney William Seikaly stepped-in and said "insurance companies take over the messaging" in cases like this.

Bailey and Donnely said they first expressed their concerns and allegations in a private meeting on Sunday with the victims' families, before going public with them at a news conference on Monday.

"I’m tired of being kicked in the teeth by people who just want to know the truth," Donnelly said in a news release. "If Oxford Strong means anything, it has to be more than just enduring the pain. It has to include being able to handle the truth."

The district hired two independent law firms to investigate the events leading up to the deadly shooing after turning down Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel's request to investigate the events for free.

Ethan Crumbley, 16, pleaded guilty to killing four students and wounding seven other people when he walked out of the boy's bathroom and began firing inside Oxford High School on Nov. 30, 2021. He was placed in the Oakland County Jail while he waits for a sentencing date.

Crumbley's parents, Jennifer and James Crumbley, were each charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter after prosecutors said the couple ignored disturbing warning signs from their son leading up to the deadly shooting.

The couple was placed separately in Oakland County Jail, each with a $500,000 bond. They were denied a bond reduction numerous times. Their trial is expected to start on Jan. 17, 2023.