Jennifer Crumbley grilled over extramarital affairs in 2nd day on stand
Jennifer Crumbley came under fire Friday for extramarital relationships as she was cross-examined by prosecutors in a second day on the stand in her manslaughter trial. Prosecutors grilled the mother of Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley on her "vigilance as a parent" and questioned how she spent her time ahead of the shooting that killed four people in November 2021.
Prosecutors revealed that Crumbley used an app, Adult Friend Finder, to arrange "meet-ups" just days before the shooting. After her lawyers objected to the line of questioning, prosecutors said they were hitting back at her testimony that she had only one affair.
Earlier in the trial, Brian Meloche -- a long-time friend of Jennifer Crumbley -- revealed on the stand that the two had been having an affair when her son carried out the school shooting.
"She depicted herself as having one extramarital affair for a six-month period of time where she met with him one time a week. That was her testimony," Assistant Prosecutor Marc Keast said in court Friday, asking Crumbley, "It was you and Mr. Meloche arranging with other individuals to meet after work, as well?"
"I only met with Brian during work hours," she responded. "The times we were at the hotel, I was on business. We did arrange for other people to meet us there."
Prosecutors wrapped up cross-examination Friday morning. Court went into a recess as prosecutors discussed whether they wanted to rebut a line of questioning from the defense following cross-examination related to text messages sent from Crumbley's phone during a manhunt for the couple.
Defense attorney Shannon Smith said that when Crumbley's testimony is over, the defense was ready to begin closing arguments.
Jennifer Crumbley and James Crumbley have both been charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the shooting carried out by their then-15-year-old son. James Crumbley will go on trial separately in March. Both parents have pleaded not guilty.
Ethan Crumbley has been sentenced to life in prison without parole for killing four students and injuring seven others on Nov. 30, 2021.
On Friday, prosecutors pushed Crumbley on how much time she spent on hobbies, including her interest in horses and ski patrolling, as well as the time consumed by her affair. Crumbley said her son "was not into horses" so she often did not take him to the barn because he did not want to go.
Crumbley said the gun used in the shooting, which she had posted online was a "gift" for Ethan, said the gun was only for use at a shooting range, when they went together as a family.
Jennifer Crumbley first took the stand in her own defense on Thursday, testifying for hours about the days and months leading up to the shooting to the shooting, the day of the shooting and the following days.
Judge Cheryl Matthews also decided Friday to allow texts between Jennifer Crumbley and her attorneys from the night her and her husband were apprehended by police after a manhunt to be used by prosecutors in the trial.
While reviewing evidence in preparation for the trial, prosecutors had accidentally seen a screenshot of one of the texts, giving them reason to believe they could help their case. Matthews had originally prohibited them from admitting the texts as evidence, until Crumbley's testimony raised the issue again.
While the text messages fall under attorney client privilege and were not allowed to be used in trial, prosecutors asked Matthews to allow 23 messages between Crumbley and her attorneys into evidence to dispute her testimony. On Thursday, Crumbley had testified that while she was aware she had been charged, she was awaiting instruction from her lawyer before turning herself in.
Crumbley testified that she was asleep when police arrived on the scene of the art studio where the parents were staying days after the shooting took place, but prosecutors say the texts prove that she was awake.