Ethan Crumbley, 16, pleaded guilty to 24 felony charges in Oakland County Circuit Court on Monday morning.
Crumbley admitted to walking out of the bathroom at Oxford High School in November and firing several rounds at classmates after having earlier penned in his journal “I will cause the biggest school shooting in Michigan’s history. I have fully mentally lost it.”
The teen admitted to bringing a 9mm handgun to school that day in his backpack, and admitted the pre-meditated murder of four classmates, assault with intent to murder seven others, 12 counts of possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and one count of terrorism causing death.
This is the first time a U.S. school shooter has been convicted of terrorism.
In entering his guilty plea, Ethan dropped a bombshell that may hurt his parents in their separate criminal case, telling the judge that the gun he used in the shooting was easily accessible.
“It was not locked,” Ethan said in court, contradicting his parents’ claims that the gun was properly stored in a secure area.
There was no plea agreement, and Crumbley was charged as an adult, facing life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The next court hearing has been scheduled, tentatively, for Feb. 9, 2023, in which the judge will consider Crumbley’s sentencing and how his age may play a role in what is called a Miller hearing. An actual sentencing date has not yet been set; the judge will set that date during the February hearing.