Michigan students sue school district after deadly mass shooting

Several students who survived a mass shooting last year at Oxford High School in Michigan are now suing the school district to demand a “fully transparent and independent third-party investigation.” 

The complaint was filed in the Southern Division of the Eastern District of Michigan against the Oxford Community School District and several school officials. 

“Although Plaintiffs survived the shooting, they have suffered irreparable harm,” court documents filed Friday said. 

“Every day since the tragedy that took place on November 30, 2021, students at Oxford High School, including Plaintiffs, have entered through the school doors assuming they will have to defend themselves should another violent attack ensue,” it continued.

The case further alleged that the school district and its leadership “have failed to remedy the unconstitutional policies and customs that caused the shooting to occur” which the plaintiffs say deprived them “of the full and equal enjoyment of their property right to a public education.”  

The lawsuit seeks no monetary damages but asks for “complete transparency in all future communications with parents and students at Oxford High School” as students prepare for another school year. 

The Hill has reached out to Oxford Community School District for comment.

Four students — Tate Myre, Hana St. Juliana, Madisyn Baldwin and Justin Shilling — were killed in the shooting, and six other students and one teacher were injured.

The shooter, Ethan Crumbley, has been charged with 24 counts including one count of terrorism causing death, four counts of first degree murder, seven counts of assault with intent to commit murder and 12 counts of possession of a firearm in commission of a felony.

Oakland County prosecutor Karen McDonald has said he is to be tried as an adult. 

His parents, Jennifer and James Crumbley, have also been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter. They, along with their son, have pleaded not guilty.  

Last month, more than 100 students from Oxford High School took part in nationwide walkouts to protest gun violence after a brutal shooting in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers were killed at an elementary school.