Michigan school shooter's mum weeps as she goes on trial

A mother who is the first US parent ever to go on trial for failing to stop her son from carrying out a deadly school shooting has sobbed in court as she saw CCTV of the attack.

Jennifer Crumbley's lawyer said the prosecution was intended to "send a message to gun owners".

Mrs Crumbley, 45, denies a charge of involuntary manslaughter.

Her son is serving life in prison for killing four classmates at Oxford High School in Michigan in 2021.

Mrs Crumbley's husband, James, is facing a separate trial on the same charges, which are punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

During the attacker's trial last year, his attorneys argued he was neglected by his parents and suffered from mental illness. But he later said his parents did not know about his plans and that he was solely responsible.

The trial opened on Thursday, and Mrs Crumbley wept as jurors were shown a video captured by a school security camera on the day of the shooting.

Prosecutor Karen McDonald objected that the defendant and her attorney were "sobbing" in violation of the judge's request for those in court to control their emotions during the trial.

"We were not sobbing or making a scene," said Mrs Crumbley's attorney, Shannon Smith, raising her voice. "All my eye makeup is still on."

The defendant's legal team says she is being unfairly blamed because she could not have predicted her son's actions.

At opening arguments, Ms Smith began her defence by quoting Taylor Swift's song Bad Blood, saying: "Band-Aids don't fix bullet holes."

She accused prosecutors of charging her client "in an effort to make the community feel better, in an effort to make people feel like someone is being held responsible, in an effort to send a message to gun owners".

"And none of those problems will be solved with charging Jennifer Crumbley with involuntary manslaughter."

But lawyers for the state argued the case is not about bad parenting or gun rights.

Prosecutor Marc Keast told the jury: "Jennifer Crumbley didn't pull the trigger that day, but she is responsible for those deaths."

"We're not here to talk about good parenting or bad parenting," he added. "It's not illegal to be a bad parent."

Prosecutors say that Mr and Mrs Crumbley gave their son the murder weapon as a Christmas gift, and did not help him get the mental health support he needed.

Her lawyers have blamed her husband, saying he was responsible for ensuring the gun was safely stored at home.

Both parents attempted to flee after being charged with manslaughter and were found hiding in the basement of a Detroit warehouse. Their lawyers say they left home for their safety and planned to turn themselves in later.

There were three witnesses on Thursday: the school principal, a teacher who survived the attack and an employee of the gun shop where the killer and his father shopped for his handgun.

On the day of the shooting, school officials found the boy, who was then 15, with disturbing drawings.

His parents were called to school to review the drawings, but left after concluding the meeting in only 11 minutes, Mr Keast said.

None of the adults checked the boy's backpack, where he stored the gun, and he was sent back to class.