PONTIAC (WWJ) -- A judge has ruled NOT to limit which affected students and families are sent information about the case against the Oxford High School shooter's parents.
James and Jennifer Crumbley were charged with involuntary manslaughter for the shooting that claimed the lives of four Oxford students and injured six other students and a teacher.
On October 10, James and Jennifer Crumbley filed a motion to restrict or limit pre-trial comments by the prosecution, citing their right to a fair trial in front of an unbiased jury.
In their motion, the Crumbley's attorneys argued that updates should be limited to only the four families listed in their specific case -- those whose children died in the shooting.
Currently, updates are being provided to approximately 1,800 people determined to be victims of last November's shooting.
The prosecution is required by the Crime Victim's Rights Act (CVRA) to provide updates about court proceedings to victims prior to the trial.
The prosecution filed a response on October 12, saying that their use of the mass email list to provide updates is in line with legal best-practices and also necessary due to the number of people affected by the shooting
Additionally, they reasoned that while there are only four complainants listed in the Crumbleys' case, anyone affected by the shooting qualifies as a victim and can receive updates.
The Crumbleys also objected to a specific update that cited news stories where the Crumbleys made claims about their parenting -- screenshots of which were posted to social media. In the update, the prosecution stated that the Crumbleys had not provided any evidence to support such claims.
Defense attorneys for the Crumbleys said the language constituted criticism and could potentially taint the jury pool.
The prosecution asserted that their statement about the Crumbleys' parenting is "demonstrably true" because no evidence had been submitted to support their claims about how they raised their son.
On Tuesday, October 18, Judge Cheryl A. Matthews of the Oakland County Circuit Court issued a ruling that no limits will be placed on the number of victims the prosecution provides with information.
"Though the Court does not know the exact number of victims in this case, the Court agrees with the Prosecution that there are certainly far more than four," Judge Matthews wrote.
Judge Matthews ruled that the update in question was critical. She added that selecting an unbiased jury would already be challenging, and that "misleading" statements by the prosecution would make it more difficult.
While Judge Matthews did not sanction the prosecution, she reminded both sides of their duty to protect the rights of the defendants and the victims.
Judge Matthews had previously issued a gag order preventing both the prosecution and defense attorneys from talking to the media about the case.
The gag order is still in place and was not technically violated because a civilian -- and not the prosecution -- posted the screenshots of the update.
Matthews did acknowledge that information sent to so many people was likely to be shared and eventually make its way to the media. She advised the prosecution to act with that in mind.
The Crumbleys' legal team has filed numerous requests during the pre-trial process, including asking for the couple's bond to be lowered, asking for certain evidence to be excluded, requesting a change of venue, and asking the Michigan Supreme Court to throw out the charges.
So far all of these requests have been denied, and -- according to WWJ Legal Analyst Charlie Langton -- it appears unlikely that the Michigan Supreme Court will choose to take the Crumbleys' case.
The Crumbleys are scheduled to appear in court again later this month.
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