(WWJ) -- The judge in the case against the parents of alleged Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley has issued a gag order.
Oakland County judge Cheryl Matthews issued a gag order Monday morning preventing both the prosecution and defense attorneys from commenting to the media about the Crumbly parents’ case. They will only be allowed to communicate about it in open court.
According to WWJ Newsradio 950's Charlie Langton, the judge said she didn't want any type of unfair prejudices because then they would need to change the venue location.
The judge also addressed the defense's other motion, which was about moving the case out of Oakland County, but that was denied.
The general rule is that any motions for change of venue cannot be made unless the jury is too prejudiced to hear the case, but that only occurs during jury selection.
The judge said that Oakland County is big -- and pretrial publicity alone does not give them a reason to change the venue.
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The attorneys for James and Jennifer Crumbley asked Judge Matthews on Tuesday, June 21, to sanction Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald for “unethical and inappropriate” comments she has made in the media.
The filing followed previous requests to change the venue of the trial and limit pre-trial publicity, claiming they cannot receive a fair trial in Oakland County. Attorneys say McDonald has ignored their requests to stop insinuating the defense team is lying.
"The prosecution continuously putting absolutely false information in the public purview, and doubling down on the misinformation when called out, is what will cause the Crumbleys to be deprived of a fair trial," attorneys Shannon Smith and Mariel Lehman said in the court documents.
The 15-page filing contends “a prosecutor’s opinion of guilt is much more likely to create prejudice.”
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