LANSING, Mich. — The Oxford School Board has declined a second offer by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel to conduct an independent investigation into the deadly school shooting at Oxford High School in November of 2021.
Nessel first offered her department's services to investigate the events that lead up to the shooting in December of 2021, but the school's superintendent declined the offer.
There have been multiple lawsuits filed by students and parents of victims against faculty and staff at Oxford High School for events that lead up to the shooting.
The Attorney General offered her office up to conduct an independent investigation into these events in April, but was turned down for a second time.
On Wednesday, Nessel issued a statement regarding the school board's decision to decline her offer:
“I am deeply disappointed by the school board’s repeated rejection of my offers to perform an independent and thorough review of the systems and procedures in the days leading up to and on November 30, 2021. My goal is not to assign blame but to help identify ways to improve school safety for Oxford and all schools in Michigan. The school board’s unwillingness to partner with my department on this effort flies in the face of transparency. The rejection sends a message that the board is more focused on limiting liability than responding to the loud outcry from the Oxford community to deliver greater peace of mind to the students, parents and educators that lived through this traumatic event.
“My department can only perform an exhaustive and thorough review when we have the full cooperation of the school board and district. Absent that partnership, I am restricted to the publicly available information we have all read and reviewed. Despite this outcome, I will return to Oxford in the coming weeks and continue my work to be a resource to the community. This latest setback does not deter my efforts to share best practices across our state in order to help all schools improve the safety and security of their learning environments.”
The school district's superintendent, Ken Weaver, pledged to hire a third-party agency investigate how the events leading up to the deadly school shooting were handled in December.
Four students were killed and seven injured in the shooting at Oxford High School on Nov. 30, 2021.
Suspect Ethan Crumbley is set to stand trial on Sept. 6 for murder and other crimes in relation to the school shooting.
Separately, the boy's parents, James and Jennifer Crumbley, are charged with involuntary manslaughter. Prosecutors say they ignored warning signs about their son's mental health and failed to keep a gun out of his reach at home.
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