DETROIT – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has asked her department’s services to conduct an independent investigation into how Oxford High School officials handled the days leading up to the school’s mass shooting.leaving four dead and seven injured.
In two tweets on Sunday morning, Nessel responded to the announcement by Oxford Superintendent Tim Throne on Saturday that the school district would hire an outside investigator to look into its actions., who said him? called a third party poll because parents have raised questions about “the school’s version of events” regarding Tuesday’s shooting.
“We have reached out to attorneys for the Oxford Community School District and have requested the services of the Michigan Attorney General to conduct a full and comprehensive review of the 11/30/21 shooting and other incidents. events that led to the shooting”. Nessel said, responding to a tweet about the Detroit Free Press story.
Nessel added: “Our attorneys and agents are uniquely qualified to carry out an investigation of this magnitude and are prepared to undertake an extensive investigation and investigation to answer many questions. of the community involved in this tragedy.”
Nessel told Free Press, part of the USA TODAY Network, that she had been in contact throughout the week with Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald, who, Nessel said, “made clear that a comprehensive investigation of the school was underway. (need) is fulfilled.”
McDonald’s gave a red flag Friday, 15-year-old Ethan Crumbley has charged in the shooting, which included a cell phone search for gunfire observed by a teacher the day before the incident and a note found on the suspect’s desk hours before the shooting had a picture of a bullet. inscription “blood everywhere” near a person who appeared to have been shot down.
Nessel’s the office is in the best position to make that assessment, she said, because it has both civil and criminal attorneys and investigators. That means the AG can look not only to see if any criminal law has been violated, but also to see if there is a civil violation. Her office also has experience reviewing policies and procedures to make sure all are followed and that those applied are the best plan.
Nessel said the investigation should be conducted by a truly independent agency, not a private law firm hired by the school district, because a private law firm is often more about “protecting our clients.” surname”. In this case, it would be the school district.
“We want to answer all the questions parents have about this,” says Nessel. That includes trying to figure out the reality of the situation.
“There’s a lot of information out there,” Nessel said. “At this point, I don’t know what is right or wrong.”
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Nessel’s office sent an email to the district’s attorney on Saturday providing services. She said that as of midday Sunday she had yet to receive a response, but wasn’t upset about it.
“They should sit down and talk about it,” she said.
On Saturday, Throne sent out a letter to parents about the district’s actions in Tuesday’s shooting.
He wrote that Oxford High School counselors did not believe that the 15-year-old boy accused of killing four classmates and injuring seven others was at risk of harming others. He also wrote that Crumbley, who will be charged as an adult on charges of murder, terrorism and other crimes, appeared calm during an office meeting with his parents on Tuesday the morning of the shooting and asserted a graphic depiction of blood and a bullet is part of the idea of a video game he’s working on.
The letter also contained a pledge to conduct an independent investigation. It comes after many parents and community members questioned whether school officials could intervene more strongly in Crumbley’s behavior.
“Our community and our families deserve a full, transparent account of what happened,” Throne wrote. “We also plan regular updates for our family and community.”
Follow David Jesse on Twitter @reporterdavidj.
