Crumbley attorney may face sanctions over motion on Oxford shooter's request for treatment

Jennifer Crumbley's attorney may face sanctions over information about the Oxford High School shooter she included in a public motion, according to a judge's order.

Prosecutors allege attorney Shannon Smith did not fully read documents before filing a motion and for violating Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Cheryl Matthews' protective order of shooter Ethan Crumbley's psychiatric records. They also allege she knowingly filed a motion with the intent to create false headlines that the shooter did not request mental health treatment from his parents.

Smith denies this, saying the motion was filed for the sole purpose of asking for more time to review documents she recently received from prosecutors, according to her response to prosecutors' motion for sanctions.

Smith also wrote in the court filing that the shooter told a psychiatrist he asked his parents for mental health treatment prior to the shooting but his parents say the teen didn't.

Both James and Jennifer Crumbley are charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with their son's murder of four classmates at Oxford High School on Nov. 30, 2021.

Matthews did not make a decision on the motion by Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald's office to sanction Smith, but instead scheduled a hearing for May 13 — after Jennifer Crumbley's trial. She denied the motion for now and will reconsider it after the May hearing.

During the May hearing, Smith will have to show "why she should not be held in indirect criminal contempt" for allegedly violating the protective order, Matthews said.

"This court cautions that all court rules and court orders must be followed to avoid necessitating expedited show cause hearings," the judge wrote.

Smith also alleged that McDonald violated the court's gag order during an interview she did with Channel 7 WXYZ earlier this month. McDonald was asked about the Crumbleys' trial, and while she initially pointed to the gag order that made her unable to talk to the media about the case, she went on to say, "We don't charge cases that we don't believe we can prove beyond a reasonable doubt," Smith wrote.

Matthews declined to sanction McDonald for the comment, noting she did not believe she violated the gag order.

Prosecutors said Smith violated the court's protective order for the shooter's medical records, which includes the interviews he did with psychiatrist Dr. Lisa Anacker during a competency evaluation.

Prosecutors also said Smith's statements in the motion that the shooter did not ask his parents for mental health treatment are inaccurate. Smith told prosecutors she had not read Anacker's competency report, just her notes, which are subject to the protective order, Assistant Prosecutor David Williams wrote.

Instead of withdrawing her motion, Smith allegedly proposed that prosecutors disclose additional information from the protected records in their response.

"Had counsel read the report, she would have known that those statements are false," Williams wrote. "The clear inference is that defense counsel intentionally chose not to file the Motion under seal, and not to seek concurrence as required in the Court Rules. It is equally clear that she did so in the hopes of creating false headlines, which is, ironically, something she frequently accuses the prosecution of doing."

Williams said these false statements are particularly egregious because it is a high-profile case, these reports are traumatic for victims and their families and because Smith did not read the records she was citing.

The shooter told Anacker, who was the prosecutor's expert witness on the teen's mental health during his Miller hearing, that he "wanted to see a therapist but (he) did not tell (his) parents," according to Smith's motion. Smith called this information "absolutely critical."

But it is not true, Williams wrote in his motion to sanction Smith. When prosecutors provided a screenshot of a page that confirms the shooter did ask to see a therapist, Smith allegedly said she had not read Anacker's competency report.

Jennifer Crumbley's trial is set to begin in January. Her and her husband's trials were set to run at the same time, but were granted separate trials earlier this month. James Crumbley does not have a trial date set yet, but his motion for a separate trial was granted.

kberg@detroitnews.com