On November 30, 2021, at Oxford High School in Michigan, there was a shooting that took place killing 4 students and injuring 7 others. The shooter has been identified as Ethan Crumbley (15), who is being charged as an adult with four counts of first-degree murder. His parents James and Jeniffer Crumbley are facing charges as well of four counts of involuntary manslaughter. From CNN news this has been declared the deadliest US school shooting since May of 2018.

Provided by CNN is a timeline of the days leading up to the shooting. The day before, Monday, a teacher spotted Ethan looking at suspicious pictures of gun and ammunition on his phone. Out of concern, there was a meeting with a counselor and another member of the staff. In the meeting, Ethan claimed he wasn’t doing anything wrong, “shooting sports are a family hobby”. A letter from Tim Thorne, the head of the Oxford Community Schools district, wrote about the events. He writes “The school tried to reach the student’s mother that day, but didn’t hear back until the following day when his parents confirmed the student’s story.” The prosecutors found that the mother texted Ethan regarding the meeting saying, “LOL I’m not mad at you. You have to learn not to get caught“.

On Tuesday morning, the day of the shooting, there was yet another concern reported from a teacher regarding alarming pictures that Ethan (15) had drawn and was sent to the counselor’s office. His cover story was that the drawing was inspired by a want to pursue a career in designing video games. The staff still contacted his parents and asked them to come to the school and questioned them on whether or not he has shown signs of wanting to harm himself or others, explained Thorne in his letter. He continued saying that the parents were asked to take their son home and give him counseling within the next 48 hours or they would be forced to contact Child Protective Services. His parents refused to take him home and claimed they wish for their son to remain in school to continue his studies.

The shooting itself occurred during the passing period and Ethan (15) began shooting as hundreds of students walked in the hallways. Throne continues in his letter saying, “Before the shooter was able to walk a short distance to enter the main hallway, students and staff had already entered classrooms, locked doors, erected makeshift barricades and locked down or fled according to their training.” again provided by CNN News.

The names of the four students who were shot and killed are Justin Shilling (17), Madisyn Baldwin (17), Tate Myre (16), and, Hana St. Juliana (14). Aside from these four souls taken too soon, there were also seven others that were injured. The parents of the student, Riley Franz, Mr. Jeffery Franz, and Mrs. Brandi Franz have filed a lawsuit against the district. Their child Riley was shot in the neck and so they filed their lawsuit for “willfully misrepresenting the dangers” of a potential shooting and acting recklessly” reported CNN. They are seeking 100,000,000 and a jury trial.

This is still a developing story with updates that will be reported soon. If you see any alarming activity on a peer or staff’s phone or any device, please go to someone and prevent a tragedy like this to occur again. School should be a safe environment for everyone, so even if it’s a joke or a rumor, never take a chance. Go to a trusted adult on campus.