2021 Oxford school shooting

The mental health of the teenager who killed four classmates could determine whether he spends his life in prison without a chance for parole.

Michigan has invested $335 million in school security since the 2021 Oxford High School shootings. Concern over shootings has yielded a gold-rush of security vendors offering schools everything from robotic dogs to bulletproof whiteboards.

The Oxford High School shooter who killed four students and injured seven others in 2021 when he was 15, tortured birds, fantasized about children suffering and researched Michigan’s prison sentences before carrying out the shooting, according to testimony Thursday.

Michigan prosecutors oppose these bills, arguing there are already safeguards in place that make life terms without parole rare for teens convicted of murder. The pending legislation also would allow parole boards to consider release after just 10 years.

The parents of Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley are appealing a Court of Appeals decision that concluded they could stand trial for allowing their minor son access to firearms.

The report found current security levels at the school are appropriate and surpass those at most schools. But it also recommended some additional steps, including more consistent questions about access to weapons for students undergoing threat assessments.

The Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court’s finding that James and Jennifer Crumbley, parents of Oxford shooter Ethan Crumbley, can face trial on involuntary manslaughter charges.

Democrats in the Michigan Senate voted Thursday to create laws allowing confiscation of guns from those who pose dangers, universal background checks and mandatory safe storage to keep firearms away from children.

Action on a trio of gun law changes could come this week from Michigan Democrats who now control the state Legislature.

In the month since a terrifying mass shooting, a loose collection of MSU students has emerged to organize sit-downs, pressure lawmakers, tend to classmates and demand that school officials create a safer campus for those who follow.

Deadly shootings at MSU and Oxford High spurred the tate to divert millions of dollars for school police officers and other security measures. Research is mixed on whether those measures save lives, and they come with a cost to student mental health.

Jennifer Conlin covered the 2021 shootings at Oxford High School for The New York Times. Now, as a freshman representative in a swing district, she said there is growing consensus even among gun owners that something must change.

Universal background checks, safe storage and red flag laws are introduced, following Monday’s mass shooting in East Lansing.

Some MSU students have now survived multiple mass shootings. All have been changed by constant fear of active shooters

A bipartisan House panel created after the deadly shootings at Oxford High School did not address gun safety in its recommendations because it could not reach consensus. Now, with a Democratic led House and Senate, advocates see an opening.

Democrats want to pass red flag, safe storage and universal background check laws when they take charge in January. Most research say the measures can reduce gun deaths, but much is inconclusive.

Michigan superintendents are trying to balance physical technology to secure schools, with building stronger mental health supports for students. They say school safety continues to be something they want to improve.

What happens now? Sentencing, an ongoing criminal case against the teen’s parents, lawsuits against Oxford and more debate about whether anything can be done policywise to prevent such shootings.

Schools should be safe places in which children learn, socialize, and grow. It is time for the Michigan legislature to heed the call of Michiganders on the issue of common sense gun reform.

Tips about planned school attacks rolled in after the Oxford High School shooting. But the OK2SAY confidential tip line also allowed officials help students in distress, including those who were suicidal.