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School Knew Of Michigan Shooter’s Problems Before His Rampage, Lawyer Claims

(Photo by David Guralnick-Pool/Getty Images)

Kay Smythe News and Commentary Writer
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A lawyer representing the families of victims of a mass high school shooting in Michigan claimed Thursday that some school staff had concerns about the shooter months prior.

“From literally the beginning of school, Ethan Crumbley was evidencing signs of being a highly troubled individual, to say the least,” Detroit attorney Ven Johnson said, according to ABC News. Johnson cited depositions recorded as part of a civil lawsuit against the school district and staff at Oxford High School, where Crumbley now 16, is alleged to have fatally shot four students and wounded others, the outlet continued.

Crumbley’s trial will start next year, where he will be tried as an adult on four counts of first-degree murder and roughly 19 other charges related to the November 30 shooting. His attorney entered a not guilty plea in the Oakland County Circuit Court in January.

One teacher at the school said that Crumbley had doodled an ammunition magazine on a note card in August, ABC News reported. He also reportedly wrote that “Making Bombs for Hitler” was his favorite book, and wrote an autobiographical poem about in which he said he “feels terrible and that his family is a mistake.”

At least one teacher sent the poem to the school counselor in September, but reported that there was no follow-up, ABC News noted. One the morning of the shooting, his parents were called into the school and confronted with the materials, and another of a handgun with the words, “the thoughts won’t stop. Help me,” the outlet continued. (RELATED: Researchers Claim They Can ‘Catch’ Mass Shooters Before They Carry Out Acts Of Violence)

Crumbley’s parents refused to remove him from the school after the 13-minute meeting, but were told to get him counseling, ABC News reported. They are both facing charges of involuntary manslaughter.

The Daily Caller reached out to Oxford Community Schools, which directed to a statement from Superintendent Ken Weaver noting that the system is not “responding to media about specific claims made by attorneys involved in the ongoing lawsuits.”