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James Crumbley, father of Oxford High School school shooter Ethan Crumbley, exits the courtroom during his trial on four counts of involuntary manslaughter for the deaths of four Oxford High School students who were shot and killed by his son, on March 7, 2024 at Oakland County Circuit Court in Pontiac, Michigan.
James Crumbley, the father of Michigan school shooter Ethan Crumbley, vowed to "go on a rampage" against the prosecutor in his case following his at least 10-year prison stint, according to jailhouse phone calls.
Earlier this week, James and his wife Jenner Crumbley were both sentenced to 10-15 years behind bars after they were convicted of involuntary manslaughter for the 2021 Oxford High School shooting perpetrated by their then-15-year-old son, Ethan Crumbley, HNGN previously reported.
They were the first parents to be convicted in a U.S. mass school shooting in the case prosecuted by Oakland County Prosecuting Attorney Karen McDonald.
"You know, I kind of feel like a martyr," James said in a recorded jailhouse phone call in January, WDIV-TV reported, citing court documents. "It's (expletive) if they allow this stupid (expletive) to do to us. What she's trying to do, based on nothing. Here's the thing: she never did any type of investigation before they charged us."
"They're trying to blame it all on us," he continued. "They're trying to say none of it should have happened because of you. It's just too (expletive) ridiculous. It wasn't us, it was the (expletive) school."
"I am f****** on a rampage, Karen. Yes, Karen McDonald. Your a** is going down and you better be f****** scared," James said, CBS News reported, according to the documents.
"Go ahead and report this call," he threatened. "Send it to Karen McDonald, tell her how James Crumbley is going to (expletive) take her down; she will not have a law license when I'm done with her."
It's unclear who James was speaking to, however James' defense attorney Mariell Lehman said her client was just "venting" in those calls.
"In reviewing the phone calls which are alleged to contain threats of physical harm, it is clear that Mr. Crumbley is venting to loved ones about his frustrations related to the lack of investigation done by the prosecution prior to authorizing charges against him and his wife which resulted in his more than two-year incarceration up to this point. He does not threaten physical harm to Karen McDonald, instead, the calls are clear that he wants to ensure that she does not do to other people what she had done in this case – authorizing charges before an investigation could be conducted," Lehman said in court documents, according to the outlet.
Ethan, now 17, previously pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree murder for the slayings of 16-year-old Tate Myre, 16-year-old Justin Shilling, 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana, and 17-year-old Madsyn Baldwin. He is currently serving a life sentence.
