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The tragic evil of Ethan Crumbley: Shooter filmed himself torturing animals, texted mom about demons

Among several other disturbing behaviors that Ethan Crumbley's parents ignored, the Oxford shooter texted his mother about 'demons' and 'ghosts'

UPDATE: Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley will pursue an insanity defense in his criminal trial, a notice filed in court has revealed. Signed by his defense attorneys, the filing reads, "Please take notice that pursuant to MCL 769.20a, the Defendant, Ethan Crumbley, intends to assert the defense of insanity at the time of the alleged offense and gives notice of his intention to claim such a defense." The school will now have to respond to Crumbley's notice and subsequently order him to undergo a psychiatric evaluation by a qualified professional. The professional will determine whether or not Crumbley was mentally ill or intellectually disabled when he carried out the shooting.

Among several other disturbing behavior that Ethan Crumbley's parents ignored, the Oxford shooter texted his mother about “demons” and “ghosts". The 15-year-old also fimled himself torturing animals, made Molotov cocktails at home, and drew a sketch of himself shooting up his school in his journal, Oakland County Assistant Prosecutor Marc Keast said in court.

Crumbley has repeatedly been referred to as a 'psychopath' by the internet because of the disturbing details that emerged about him ever since he was arrested. "I'm guessing psychopath Ethan Crumbley will be convicted of all charges. But I'm willing to bet that his parents will not be convicted of involuntary manslaughter. And the NRA will make heroes of the parents who enabled their psychopathic child," one user had written back in 2021. "The way they tried to post this 4th grade pic of Ethan Crumbley after a robotics competition pisses me off!! Nevermind his mugshot where he looks like a deranged psychopath," another user had said. 

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According to Keast, Ethan sent these texts to his mother in March multiple times, and sometimes Jennifer Crumbley would take hours to reply. Ethan also wrote about demons in his journal. “The evidence shows a 15-year-old who has repeatedly informed his parent that he was hallucinating, the same 15-year-old who continuously demonstrated tendencies that were worrisome – all able to be found by his parents,” Keast said.

Ethan shot four students dead and injured over seven people at a high school in Oxford, Michigan on Tuesday, November 30. Authorities later found videos on the suspect's phone that show him talking about killing students, a sheriff’s official said. The disclosure was made before the arraignment of Ethan Crumbley, 15, against whom Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald has announced charges, 4 counts of first-degree murder, 7 counts of assault with intent to murder, 12 counts of possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and 1 count of terrorism causing death.

Lt Tim Willis of the Oakland County Sheriff’s office read from Crumbley’s indictment and said that the videos were recorded the night before the school shooting on November 30, roughly an hour north of Detroit. Authorities have also allegedly discovered a journal with entries that mentioned shooting and killing students. Crumbley, who is being tried as an adult, pleaded not guilty during the arraignment. The Oakland County prosecutor has said that there was a "mountain" of evidence showing that the attack was premeditated and not impulsive.

Unconfirmed screenshots also fueled rumors about the incident. A video has been doing the rounds on social media, allegedly showing the shooter throwing a Molotov cocktail in his backyard. Social media is claiming that despite the signs, school authorities did not take the required steps. The school has been slammed for not doing enough to protect the students despite prior warnings.

Internet sleuths have discovered that the suspect had posted creepy pictures on his Instagram account, where he began an alleged countdown before carrying out the shooting, terming it 'Return of The Devil'. The shooting survivors claimed that the suspect had specific targets whom he attacked first, but it is unclear how the suspect and the victims were connected.