OAKLAND COUNTY (WWJ) -- Lawyers for admitted Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley are asking the court to allow their defendant to wear street clothes for his July 27 Miller hearing.
Crumbley has been limited to wearing an orange Oakland County Jail uniform since his arrest following the Nov. 30, 2021 mass shooting that killed four classmates.
Defense attorneys Paullette M. Loftin and Amy M. Hopp are asking Oakland County Circuit Judge Kwame Rowe to allow Crumbley to wear “street clothes” that would be provided by his court-appointed guardian. Victims and family members of those killed will be allowed to make statements at the hearing to determine if 17-year-old Crumbley will face a life-without-parole sentence.
Defendants are typically allowed to wear street clothes for trial. However, there will be no trial since Crumbley pleaded guilty last October to four counts of first-degree murder, seven counts of assault with intent to murder and 12 counts of felony use of a firearm.
Attorneys argue forcing Crumbley to wear the orange jumpsuit would deprive the teen of the "respect and dignity" given others in the courtroom.
For adults in Michigan, first-degree murder is an automatic life sentence. Crumbley, however, was 15-years-old at the time of the killings and therefore, a minor. A 2012 Supreme Court ruling requires he undergo an additional Miller hearing before receiving a life sentence.
Prosecutors will have to convince the judge that Crumbley is “irreparably corrupt” and should be given an automatic life sentence.
Crumbley's attorneys filed the motion on Friday, July 7.
Rulings are expected Wednesday.
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