Listen to James Crumbley's call to police reporting his missing gun after Oxford shootings
Authorities on Tuesday released James Crumbley's 911 call reporting his gun missing the day of the Oxford High School mass shooting, in which he mentions meeting with school officials that morning over concerns with his son's behavior.
"I think my son took the gun," Crumbley says on the recording. "I don’t know if it’s him. I don’t know what’s going on. I am really freaking out."
In the call at 1:37 p.m. Nov. 30, Crumbley tells the 911 operator he's at his house in Oxford, has heard about the active school shooting and references the meeting he had at the school earlier that morning because of a disturbing drawing his son had made.
Ethan Crumbley that morning drew a gun on a math homework sheet, scrawling, "My life is useless," "Blood everywhere" and "The thoughts won't stop, help me," according to prosecutors.
James Crumbley and his wife, Jennifer Crumbley, are charged with involuntary manslaughter for allegedly buying their 15-year-old son the gun that police say was used in the deadly shooting, and failing to properly secure it.
Their preliminary exam was held Tuesday in district court in Rochester Hills, where the call was played. The Free Press received an audio copy of the call through the Michigan Freedom of Information Act.
Here is a partial transcript of the call:
911 OPERATOR: 911 what is the location of your emergency?
JAMES CRUMBLEY: I am not really sure. I am at my house. There is an active shooter situation going on at the high school. My son goes to the high school. I have a missing gun at my house. I need an officer to come to my house right away please.
911 OPERATOR: "OK, I am not going to be able to send anybody to your house right now, sir. They are on the active shooter situation right now."
JAMES CRUMBLEY: "I understand that (muffled) I have a missing gun and my son is at the school. And we had to go meet with the counselor this morning because of something that he wrote on a (muffled) paper and then I was in town and I saw a whole bunch of cops going somewhere. And I made sure … I wanted to get to the high school to see if something was going on at the high school. And then somebody told me that there was an active shooter and then I raced home just to like find out and I think my son took the gun. I don’t know if it’s him. I don’t know what’s going on. I am really freaking out. My son’s name is Ethan Crumbley. C-R-U-M-B-L-E-Y."
More: Witness: Jennifer Crumbley 'felt like a failure' as a mom
More: Witness: Jennifer Crumbley talked about affair, 'lonely' son at work
Operator: "… All right, sir, I am going to put you on hold for just one second, OK? I am going to talk to the command and see if I can do anything for you, OK? I am going to put you on hold."
The operator later came back on the line and said a lieutenant would contact Crumbley soon and then she asked him what his son was wearing last.
When officials discovered Ethan Crumbley's drawing the day of the shooting, they questioned him with his parents, but he was eventually allowed to return to class. Later, according to law enforcement officials and Oakland County prosecutors, he shot and killed four of his classmates and injured six other students and a teacher.
The Crumbleys have denied wrongdoing, maintaining they properly secured the gun in their home, that they had no way of knowing their son would use it to shoot up his school, and that they are not responsible for the deadly shooting.
Free Press staff writers Tresa Baldas and Lily Altavena contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: James Crumbley called 911 after the Oxford shootings. Listen here.
