Incompetence and Negligence at Oxford High School: Is Criminal Prosecution Warranted for School Officials?
As a mental health professional who has done a lot of study and research regarding school shootings, I am aghast at the level of incompetence by school officials who failed to follow the most basic protocols on how to handle a situation in which there were glaring warning signs that a tragedy was about to happen. I agree with the local prosecutor that criminal charges should be considered against school officials for gross negligence in ensuring the safety of students at Oxford High School. I totally agree with the prosecutor bringing manslaughter charges against the shooter's parents.
Let us consider the warning signs. Ethan Crumbley, the suspect, wrote, "The thoughts won't stop. Help me. Blood everywhere." This was more than just a red flag. What is ambiguous about, "Help me?" Often, a cry for help is subtle. No subtlety here. It was a clear and unambiguous alert that the suspect had disturbed thoughts which posed an imminent threat. How do we know? Because he wrote "Help me." How could those two words be misunderstood? Did the counselors even ask, "What are your thoughts? Why is there going to be blood everywhere? Would you like to get help with the thoughts that you are having? Why do you need help?" The Superintendent of the school district wrote that while the parents were summoned to the school counselors were "observing and analyzing" the suspect in the 90 minutes it took for the parents to arrive at the school.
The school officials should have been "observing and analyzing" the messages that the suspect wrote. Full stop. What more did they need to understand that this was an extremely dangerous situation? The superintendent wrote that the suspect "appeared calm." Of course he did. He knew his plan and was sanguine about it. He was probably thinking that he was talking to gullible fools. If that is what he was thinking, he was right. What would have it taken for the school officials to act--an announcement from the suspect that he is about to go on a killing spree? He virtually made such an announcement.
Did anyone consider that sending him back to the classroom may not be a good idea without having any idea of what his intentions were? Before the suspect was released back to the classroom, did it not occur to anyone that perhaps his backpack should be searched? The suspect was allowed to go to the restroom after his "counseling" session with his parents and school officials and emerge with a 9mm Sig Sauer semi-automatic weapon. The meeting with parents, suspect and school officials resulted in the parents agreeing to take their son to counseling within 48 hours. What a joke. How about taking the suspect to the hospital directly after the meeting for a complete and thorough mental health evaluation? If the parents refused, how about calling law enforcement and having the suspect involuntarily taken to the hospital on a 72 hour hold? It is unconscionable that school officials did not follow the very basic and elementary protocol of not leaving the suspect to his own devices. He was allowed to roam the hallways without escort after the meeting with a gun in his backpack. Did it not occur to anyone that he may act on his vision of "blood everywhere?" Or that when he wrote that he needed help he was serious about needing help? The suspect was asking for help. How do we know? He said so
The gross incompetence and negligence of school officials is astounding. Of course, there was no malice on their part, but that does not absolve them of responsibility. They could have and should have protected the safety of the student body and the staff. This tragedy could have and should have been averted.The actions of the school officials and the parents is a case study on how not to deal with a potential school shooter. There should be accountability. The prosecutor evidently agrees with me.
In my private and clinical experience I have encountered similar situations. The suspect in this case is not an outlier. Homicidal and suicidal teens are not as uncommon as many people may believe I have encountered both homicidal and suicidal teens in my private practice. Safety was always, and is, my top priority. Research has shown that school shootings beget more school shootings. The next school shooter is lying in wait. And unfortunately, the wait is likely to be short before the next school shooting, especially in the wake of such incompetence and negligence. The mistakes made in the case are egregious. The best we can do now is to learn from those mistakes.
