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Up with bartenders when they serve like really drunk people and they go out and have a -- you know, kill somebody with a car. those cases are very hard -- hard to make. and, you know, as i was listening, i mean, this story is horrible. but what the parents did is terrible. but, you know, the criminal law is about acts. and like, when did they commit a crime? did they commit a crime by failing to take the gun out of the backpack? did they commit a crime by saying dont do it? to their son. i dont ...

These were patrol cars staking out their home late today. instead, they dropped off the way dar. a manhuntd began and though their attorney later said they were on their way back to turn themselves in, we have yet to see them tonight. in a moment, the county prosecutor who charge $them. first, cnn-a alexandra field joins us from oxford with new detail on the parents. alexandra? >> anderson, we are learning investigators had been keeping tabs on those parents. tracking their cell phone pings. at ...

Parents. but the facts of this case are so egregious. this doesnt just impact me as a prosecutor and a lawyer, it impacts me as a mother. >> alexandria, do you have anymore late details about this manhunt now? >> reporter: sure. the fbi, the u.s. marshals, the sheriffs department have all been trying to track down this couple. the sheriffs officer said they had been in touch with attorneys representing the couple to coordinate the arrest but they say the attorneys then lost contact with the coup...

The problem today? >> the prosecutors office doesnt arrest people. we were in constant, um, communication with the sheriffs office. our -- our prosecutors, um, that were look -- leading the -- the case. and they were surveilling them and we were told they were surveilling them. we were getting updates about the cell phone pinging and they -- they conveyed to us that they were confident where -- where the two people were. um, one of the detectives working on the case who is -- whos very skilled s...

Tracked with -- through the use of a legal process. their cell phones could be pinged. if you have those cell phone numbers, you can go to the -- to the service providers and find out what towers those phones are currently accessing. it gives you a general area where that phone might be. so, theres many, many different, um, investigative avenues that im sure all of those folks are -- are running down right now. >> jeff, you heard the prosecutor defending herself against criticism about announcin...

>> yes and no. i mean, i agree with jeff that its rare that you have a case of omission, versus act. but ive had cases of omission. and, you know, i mean, these are some really egregious set of facts. thats why we say the charges are unprecedented. so are the facts. you know? and i think the prosecution does have a chance here. the text messages are bad. the events that took place at the school are bad. i mean, knowing that your child is in mental crisis and you bought him a gun and he has acces...

Is about acts. and like, when did they commit a crime? did they commit a crime by failing to take the gun out of the backpack? did they commit a crime by saying dont do it? to their son. i dont know. >> well, isnt it a crime -- i mean, its a crime to buy a gun and -- and not for yourself, to give it to a 15-year-old, isnt it? >> no, its not. i dont think it is. you know, michigan is a state where teenagers hunt with their parents all the time. i mean, there -- there is not -- you know, and -- an...

The cell phone pinging and they -- they conveyed to us that they were confident where -- where the two people were. um, one of the detectives working on the case who is -- whos very skilled swore to the warrant immediately after we had the press conference. this was all laid out very early in the morning in terms of the timing. but -- but two, at least a day and a half prior to this, i specifically said to one of my assistant prosecutors who is the lead on this case, do we have eyes on those two...

Doesnt do what you and i would do, anderson. he doesnt immediately run to the school and ask about his child or call his kid to see, are you okay? is everything okay? he drives to his house and it was -- its for one reason. to look for that weapon. and -- and finds it missing, and then makes a 9-1-1 call and says this gun is missing and i think my son is -- is the shooter. and -- and i have reviewed these facts for three days. >> jeff toobin here. i -- why didnt you arrest them, first? and then,...

World is dead, end quote. >> reporter: officials say the suspect and his parents met with administrators, law enforcement isnt notified. neither is the school resource officer. but the crumbleys who were told to get counseling for their son within 48 hours resist taking him home for the day. they never ask him where his gun is, likely in his backpack, investigators say. as news of a shooting at the high school breaks tuesday afternoon, a text from jennifer, dont do it. minutes later, prosecutors...