Crumbley parents get appointed attorneys as they file intent to appeal Oxford convictions

The parents of the Oxford High School shooter have been appointed appeals attorneys less than a month after they were sentenced to 10-15 years in prison each for four counts of involuntary manslaughter connected to the mass shooting.

James and Jennifer Crumbley have not yet officially filed an appeal, but they have taken the first step in doing so.

They are the first parents in the U.S. to be convicted of involuntary manslaughter in connection with their child's mass school shooting.

Michael Dezsi is Jennifer's attorney and Alona Sharon is James' lawyer. Both Royal Oak-based attorneys were appointed at no cost to the Crumbleys because they cannot afford to pay for their own legal representation.

Dezsi said appeals tend to move slowly. He'll first order the transcripts from pretrial hearings and the entire jury trial, which could take about three months to get.

"At this point, without having the trial transcripts, I cannot say what issues will be raised on appeal," Dezsi said. "Generally, appeals take anywhere from 12-16 months, give or take, and I would expect the Crumbley appeals to fall within that range.  Given that I was just recently appointed to represent Mrs. Crumbley for purposes of her appeal, and given that I’ve not yet obtained or reviewed the transcripts, I can’t comment on what issues will be raised on appeal."

Sharon did not immediately respond Tuesday for comment.

They filed a notice of intent to appeal April 16 and the attorneys were appointed the same day.

Their son also has filed an intent to appeal, and his appointed attorney said at the time he would be invoking his right to remain silent if he were to be called as a witness in his parents' trials. He has not submitted a formal appeal.

The Crumbleys were given the maximum sentence allowed by law by Oakland County Circuit Judge Cheryl Matthews for their gross negligence that contributed to the 2021 high school shooting carried out by their son, Ethan. The sentence, for four counts each of involuntary manslaughter, was in line with what prosecutors had sought.

The involuntary manslaughter was connected to the four children their son killed — Hana St. Juliana, 14; Madisyn Baldwin, 17; Tate Myre, 16; and Justin Shilling, 17.

Separate juries in Oakland County convicted Jennifer and James in February and March, respectively, after each deliberating for more than 10 hours before delivering their convictions.

kberg@detroitnews.com