Former Oxford dean of students Nicholas Ejak says there was no "reasonable suspicion" to search shooter's backpack
(CBS DETROIT) - The fourth day of testimony in the trial of Jennifer Crumbley, the mother of the Oxford High School shooter, continues Tuesday.
The former dean of students for Oxford High School, Nicholas Ejak, who was employed by the high school for four months before the shooting, was the first to testify.
Ejak said he had no interaction with the shooter before November 2021.
The day before the shooting, he received an email from an English teacher at the high school, who notified him about seeing the shooter look at bullets on his phone and that some of his work from throughout the year seemed to be violent.
In addition, the math teacher emailed him a photo of the violent drawings the shooter drew on his assignment.
His first thought after learning about the drawings was to alert the teen's counselor, Shawn Hopkins.
When he got to Hopkins, he said the counselor already knew why he was there since he had received an email from a teacher the day before.
They then met with the shooter and called his mother on speakerphone.
They forwarded the email of the violent drawings to Jennifer Crumbley while they were talking, and as far as her reactions go, Ejak said, "I believe she said what were you thinking? Why would you do this?"
The class periods were changing, and per protocol, to have someone, such as a hall monitor or security, retrieve a student's belongings when they are in a parent meeting so their belongings aren't left at a desk when the next student arrives, Ejak said.
So, Ejak went and retrieved the backpack and gave it to the shooter.
After speaking through the shooter's struggles and with his parents, Ejak said he didn't see this as anything different than a mental health issue.
In addition, the backpack was not searched due to not having "reasonable suspicion" to search a student's belongings, which includes getting a report about them having something they are not allowed to have at school, such as a vape pen, or if a student gets nervous while a staff member is holding their backpack.
When speaking about how the need for the shooter to get counseling immediately, Ejak said Jennifer Crumbley's response was odd.
"We can't take him anywhere today; we have to go back to work," Jennifer Crumbley said.
Ejak said this was odd because parents usually follow the direction of mental health professionals immediately.
He also said the meeting seemed to end abruptly, and the parents decided not to take him home. They didn't want the shooter to be home alone, so the decision was made to keep him at school.
When the defense asked Ejak about the shooter's demeanor when they had his backpack, Ejak said, "He didn't appear to even care that I was holding his backpack."
