Can parents believe that their child would commit mass murder?

How can parents believe their child will become a mass murderer? Parents should not be held responsible for these murders. Whether these children come from broken or poor homes or show signs of mental illness at an early age, most do not become murderers.

The United States has begun to crack down on gun control among minors who have committed mass murder by arbitrarily holding parents responsible.

America is a gun-loving nation that cultivates a gun culture. Although various politicians and citizens have called for attempts to restrict gun ownership, there have been few successful changes to date.

Why are some guns still not illegal in the US?

In the United Kingdom, the Labour government imposed gun control sanctions and banned assault rifles in 1997 following the 1996 mass murder at Dunblane Primary School in Scotland, in which 43-year-old Thomas Hamilton killed 16 pupils and a teacher and injured 15 others.

Weapons are not banned in any European country, but are subject to strict regulations.

What has been happening in the United States lately?

Ethan Crumbley was sentenced to life in prison without parole in 2021 for gunning down four classmates and wounding six others and a teacher at Oxford High School in Michigan.

Jennifer and James Crumbley, his biological parents, were sentenced to ten to 15 years in prison in connection with Ethan's school shooting.

District Judge Cheryl Matthews said: “These convictions are not about poor parenting. These convictions confirm repeated acts or omissions that could have stopped a runaway train.”

It is assumed that the parents knew that their child had the ability to commit such a heinous crime.

Children say many frightening things. Mental health problems in teenagers are not synonymous with mass murder. If profilers are unable to clearly articulate the characteristics of mass murderers, how can parents be expected to do the same?

Recently, there seems to be an assumption that holding parents accountable could reduce mass murders.

James Crumbley bought his son a Sig Sauer pistol. Authorities say James and Jennifer ignored signs that their son was in distress and needed mental health help. They further claim that his mother ignored Ethan's complaints that he was hearing voices from demons. Notably, there were no red flag laws in Michigan in 2021 (they weren't enacted until 2024). A red flag law is an extreme risk protection order that allows law enforcement to confiscate guns when there are reports that a person poses a danger to themselves or others.

Although a person must be 18 years old to purchase a gun in Michigan, Michigan still had an open carry law, which meant that someone could walk into a school with a gun at the time. The laws were not clear.

A month ago, 14-year-old Colt Gray is said to have killed two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia.

His father, Colin Gray, was charged with aiding and abetting, accusing his son of illegally giving him access to an AR-15 rifle that police say he used in the attacks on the school.

In fact, Georgia has some of the weakest gun laws in the country. Georgia lawmakers passed a law in 2017 requiring colleges and universities to allow guns on campus. There is another law that allows gun owners to carry concealed handguns in public without a state license. Finally, there is no minimum age to legally own a rifle or shotgun.

Many parents who live in states where guns are legal buy guns for their children to use at shooting ranges or while hunting. An assault rifle uses a medium rifle cartridge and a detachable magazine.

Robert Crimo III, 23, is accused of killing seven people and injuring dozens more during the 2022 Independence Day parade in Chicago's Highland Park.

He is said to have fired more than 80 shots from a Smith & Wesson M&P 15 semi-automatic rifle during the attack and to have disguised himself in women's clothing during his escape to conceal distinctive tattoos on his face and neck and to blend in with the crowd. The trial will take place in February 2025.

Robert Crimo Jr., the father of the suspected shooter, pleaded guilty to seven counts of reckless conduct rather than face a felony charge.

As part of the deal he accepted, Crimo Jr. would serve two years of probation and 60 days in the Lake County Jail, as well as 100 hours of community service. Prosecutors wanted to prove that he was negligent in helping his son get a gun permit, despite knowing that his son had expressed violent and suicidal thoughts.

In all three cases, the parents are essentially accused of willful negligence. There is little doubt that each of the shooters and suspected shooters came from broken homes. There appeared to be mental health issues, as well as bullying and a generally lonely childhood. Not the best circumstances to raise a child. But how is prosecuting the parents supposed to act as a deterrent? Were the parents charged and found guilty under the laws in effect at the time of each shooting?

We have reporting laws for minors. As mental health professionals, we are required to report to authorities if we believe a minor is being physically or sexually harmed. Child Protective Services is then empowered to investigate the situation and make appropriate recommendations, including removing the minor from the home.

Under federal law, no one under the age of 18 can purchase a firearm anywhere in the country. Furthermore, you technically can't even gift or loan a gun to a minor. However, there is a “parental consent” exception that comes with restrictions.

Under federal law, a parent or guardian can purchase a gun for a minor (technically, there is no minimum age) or loan one to them. However, the parent must give the minor written permission to use the gun for certain limited purposes (hunting, target shooting, etc.).

State legislatures and the Senate are responsible for administering gun laws. Senators receive support for their campaigns from the National Rifle Association, so there is little incentive to pass laws that run counter to the beliefs of this organization, which promotes the adage “people kill people, not guns.”

Although research is currently being conducted to create a reliable profile of those at higher risk for this behavior, the results are far from solid.

As has been shown time and again, mental illness is not an indicator of violence. Poor parental decisions and poor judgement are also not indicators of violence.

On April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold entered Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. Within minutes, they killed 12 students and a teacher and injured 24 others before taking their own lives.

FBI investigators concluded that Eric Harris was likely a psychopath with narcissistic traits, unbridled aggression, and a lack of empathy. They further believed that Dylan Klebold was an angry and depressed individual with a hateful, vengeful attitude toward those he believed had mistreated him.

While these descriptions are devastating, they are based on information gathered after the crime. It is an emotional autopsy.

In A mother’s reckoning, Sue Klebold, Dylan's mother, described living with “indescribable grief and shame over that day.” “How could her child, the promising young man she had loved and raised, be responsible for such horror?”

She was probably not the only one with these questions.