Quoted from above Detroit News article:
...At his
October 2022 hearing admitting guilt, Crumbley answered questions posed to him by the judge. Paulette Michel Loftin, Crumbley’s lawyer, said after the 26-minute hearing that the shooter was remorseful and said the plea was his idea.
Ouvry also wrote that
the shooter's school records showed evidence of cognitive and "adaptive" impairments, and his report cards showed “significant learning dysfunction across his school years.” He also had functioning deficits in communication, social skills, practical skills and motor skills, she wrote.
An expert to whom the State Appellate Defender Office said prenatal alcohol exposure could be an explanation for the shooter’s dysfunctions and said testing is warranted to diagnose or rule it out. The shooter’s attorneys failed to explore this angle, as well as explore red flags in his school records and conduct an independent investigation into his family and home environment, according to the motion to withdraw his plea.
The shooter's mother, Jennifer Crumbley, was pregnant with him during her wedding to his father, James Crumbley, and two witnesses said they saw her binge drinking before and during the wedding, according to the motion.
A witness also said Jennifer allegedly admitted to drinking on her honeymoon while she was pregnant and said it "wouldn’t hurt the fetus because it was so small,” according to the motion to correct an invalid sentence. She was about seven weeks pregnant with her son at her wedding, according to the filing.
Had his attorneys explored this angle, it could have made a difference in the shooter’s decision to waive his right to a trial, according to the motion.
Since they did not pursue any neuropsychological testing, the extent of any impairments he may have is unknown, Ouvry wrote.
“(The shooter) believed there was something wrong with his brain and wanted his brain ‘scanned’ to find out what is wrong,” Ouvry wrote. “Ethan should have been advised of possible defenses at trial before he made the solemn decision to move from presumed innocent to convicted. This advice should have included information about his own history, mental illness, cognitive and adaptive impairments that related to his perception and the formation of the intent involved in his crimes. Had he been properly advised, he would not have entered a plea.”...
Reading this makes me more angry with Ethan's parents, especially his mother. Unless his parents refused assistance from school personnel, Ethan's teachers should have placed him in special classes or provided other assistance for his learning issues. Maybe LWOP isn't the best punishment for this young man who seems to have serious emotional, intellectual, mental, and social deficiencies. That said, given the severity of his mental health issues and cognitive-adaptive deficits, I don't see much hope for rehabilitation. JMO
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