Oxford Student Hurt In Shooting Will Testify Against Shooter's Father

PONTIAC, MI — A student who was injured in the deadly Oxford school shooting will be allowed to testify against the shooter's father in his upcoming trial, according to a report citing an Oakland County judge.

Prosecutors sought to call two students who were injured in the shooting to the stand, but Oakland County Judge Cheryl Matthews ruled Thursday that only one can testify. Prosecutors will be allowed to choose which student to call to the stand.

Prosecutors argued testimony from the students — Kylie Ossege and Riley Franz — is important because the case against James Crumbley involves a homicide and that their encounter with the shooter is different from two Oxford school officials who testified in Jennifer's trial.

The decision to add the students to the witness list comes after prosecutors determined two Oxford school officials, who testified at Jennifer's trial, may not take the stand again in James' trial. No students testified at Jennifer's trial.

Defense Attorney Mariell Lehman, argued the students should be blocked from the upcoming trial because James wasn't charged with shooting or wounding anyone in the school. She argued the students testimonies are only to "enflame the emotions of the jury."

Matthews' ruling also comes after she denied James' request to move his upcoming trial out of the county.

James Crumbley, 47, is set to go on trial March 5 for manslaughter charges in connection with the deadly Oxford school shooting. He faces up to 15 years in prison on each charge. Jury selection for the trial is scheduled for March 5.

Prosecutors are trying to prove James committed gross negligence leading up to the shooting. They claim the James ignored disturbing warning signs from their son leading up to the deadly shooting, and instead of getting him help, bought him a gun.

Jurors will only need to believe one of two theories to declare Crumbley guilty: That James failed to perform a legal duty in patenting, or that he knew his son was a danger to others and failed to take the ordinary care steps to avoid injuring others.

Defense lawyers maintain he had no idea what his son was planning. Moreover, defense lawyers argued James cannot be held accountable because he was not "directly involved" in the Oxford school shooting, and are not "responsible for the deaths of others."

The four students killed in the shooting were 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana, 16-year-old Tate Myre, 17-year-old Madisyn Baldwin and 17-year-old Justin Shilling.

Ethan Crumbley, who is now 17, was sentenced to life without parole last December.