Prosecutors asked a judge to prevent the parents of the accused Michigan school shooter from making romantic gestures to one another in court, including mouthing “I love you,” waving making other nonverbal signals, NBC News reports.
“The courtroom is not a place for blowing kisses and sending secret signals,” said Oakland County Chief Assistant Prosecutor David Williams, according to NBC. “This is a time for families to pursue justice.”
Jennifer and James Crumbley were both charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter after being accused of making a gun accessible to their son, who allegedly used it to kill four and injure seven in a Nov. 30 shooting at Oxford High School.
Prosecutors said that the couple’s romantic gestures make a “mockery of the crimes they’re accused of committing” and that they are “traumatic for the family members of the deceased victims who are no longer able to express their love to the victims.”
Relatives of deceased victims have complained about the Crumbleys’ gestures, the motion filed by prosecutors says.
In addition to providing access to a gun, the Crumbleys are accused of ignoring the worrisome behavior off their son, Ethan Crumbley, especially after they were shown violent drawings by Ethan the day the shooting took place.
Jennifer and James Crumbley have pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Ethan Crumbly’s lawyers have signaled that he will plead insanity to multiple charges including murder, according to court documents.