I mattered because of her. From the moment she was born, i promised myself that i would be there no matter what through the heartbreak, let downs and struggles i would be there and listen, learn and love every moment. I wouldnt miss a thing. I would always protect her. On november 30, 2021, exactly 17 years six months and 13 days made me break my first promise and it will hurt for eternity. As her mom i didnt protect her. First i would like to say thank you to the prosecution team. I say thank you to you all. Saying thank you doesnt seem enough anymore. Countless hours youve worked. Time away from your family and always taking our feelings into consideration. Karen and mark, the work youve put in to getting all the facts, speaking to us like we mattered, and never waivering from your goal speaks volumes of the people you are and im proud to call you a part of madison, life. You have all seen me hit some day i wasnt sure who i was. One minute im laughing. Next crying and sometimes im just silent. Either way one thing stayed consistent, you always listened. Jen, you are not just a friend, you are family. My mind keeps going back to something during the trial. Something that is almost on repeat like a broken record. It is something as a mother i cant understand and honestly i dont think any mother would understand. It was when jennifer said i wouldnt do anything different. Im putting a little emphasis on different as i know those some things are out of our control. Life takes turns and eventually puts them back in our control. Like giving you a hint when something needs to change. I want to compare a few things to see through my perspective. I know things are different about the events and how we see them from the events on November 30th. While your son was Hearing Voices and asking for help, i was helping madison pick out her senior classes. While you were purchasing a gun for your son and leaving it unlocked, i was helping her finish her college essay. While you dropped him off at school i texted madison drive safe, it is slick outside, have a good day. When you got a call to meet at the school about your son and how it interfered with your day, i was rearranging my schedule so i could take madison to get her oil changed for the first time. When you left without hesitation and not taking him home, i was worried that she would be okay driving in the first snowfall of the season and if she brought a coat. When you walked out of the office after hearing an active shooter, i ran from my home and started driving not to break the law. When you were on the phone pretending trying to figure out where the gun was, i was on the phone with her father and family trying to figure out where she was. When you left without knowing where your son was i was desperately trying to get there as soon as possible. When you knew the gun was missing you called the police knowing it was your son who took it. I was having family call every hospital describing what she looked like. When you texted ethan, dont do it, i was texting madison, i love you, please call mom. When you found out about the lives your son took that day, i was still waiting for my daughter in a parking lot. When you questioned the reasoning on why you would do this, i was questioning if i was doing enough to find her. When you got a chance to speak with your son and seeing him alive and showing no support, i was watching families waiting for my moment. When you asked him why, i was waiting for the answer as to why the last bus never came. When you and the Police Showed up at your house you didnt understand why they were there. And i was asking police if they checked every possible location and if i could go search, too. When you texted about not losing your job and you needed a lawyer, i was still calling my daughter because she came first in all parts of my life. When you could leave your house, i was still a prisoner in mine. When you worried about what people thought of you, i was learning your son fatally shot my daughter in the head. When you drove to get your Burner Phones for communication, i was laying on the floor crying for hours because i forgot how to speak. When you checked into your first hotel, i was telling madisons 11yearold sister she was gone. When you cared more about yourself about getting alcohol and supplies, i was identifying my daughter in the medical office wishing i could take her place. While you were hiding, i was planning her funeral. And while you were running away from your son and your responsibilities, i was s force to do the worst possible thing a parent could do, i was forced to say goodbye to my madison. We all see things different. Some prioritize and some dont. Accountability can only be given if you actually tried in the first place. As a parent we all make mistakes which is a normal way of life. Usually when mistakes happen we learn from them. We try to fix it or talk it over. But continuing to make the same mistake over and over again is no longer a mistake, thats a choice. That becomes a decision. Those decisions that you made ultimately took my daughters life because you decided that you didnt want to parent and listen to your son. You took the right away from me to be a mother. You do not get to decide that. You do not get those privileges. You are not above anyone. I love being the mom. The one thing im truly great at. You cared more about your wellbeing than the one life that you should put above anyone, your child. And because of that you took that you both took four beautiful children away from this world. Being a parent is the best part of life that you should hold to the highest level. Its an honor to be a mother or a father. Even when you think you have done your best, you continue to do more. Unfortunately, you never made it to level one. You say you wouldnt do anything different. Well, that really says what type of parents you are because there are a lot of things i would do different. But the one thing that i would have wanted to be different was to take that bullet that day so she could continue to live the life she deserved. No respect or compassion for our families. The same treatment you bestowed upon your son. The traits that have torn my family into pieces. The lack of compassion that you have shown is outright disgusting. Not only did your son kill my daughter but you both did as well. The words involuntary should not be part of your defense. Everything you did before and after were voluntary acts for your son to commit murder. Not just one, but multiple. Shaking your head during a verdict is the utmost disrespectful thing i have ever witnessed. At that moment you felt your life was more valuable than my daughters. That will never be true. You created a life you took for granted. Decided that parenting wasnt a priority. Putting your child first should be the only priority. You didnt and because of that i lost my daughter. I had to get answers after her death. Watching the video, Hearing Testimony on how your son executed my daughter, watching him put the gun to her head as she covered her head and pulled the trigger, seeing pictures of her laying in her own pool of blood. Knowing her body sat there for hours, that rig mortis had set it. Her body was in a state i couldnt imagine. Hearing her sister cream over and over again night after night. Watching her family and friends fall apart. You created all of this. You created your sons life which then allowed this to be his path. Which should be yours as well. You dont get to look away. You dont get to cry. I didnt get that choice. You failed as parents. The punishment that you face will never be enough. It will never bring her back and never be a loss that you have suffered and it will never heal the pain because one day you are going to be able to see your son, visit, hear his voice, possibly laugh, maybe see him grow. I will never see that again. You say you have suffered doesnt even compare to the loss of a child. Your honor, i request the maximum sentence be enforced as it will never come close to the Life Sentence i was given. The Life Sentence that i didnt ask for but a choice that wawas made for me. A life that i will suffer because of their negligence. Thank you. Thank you for being here. Harris that was the impact statement from a child who was killed in 2021 at a School Shooting. That was the mom, nichole, and her daughter, Madison Baldwin the third picture from the left the shot in the head. Powerful. The killer was 15 years old at the time in 2021. He is going to do life in prison without parole. That was his sentencing. His parents are on trial today and in that Courtroom Jennifer and James Crumbley no doubt were sitting where they could see this mom speaking. She referenced them. They are scheduled to appear this morning and now they are facing the close of what every media outlet acknowledges is groundbreaking in terms of the loss. They are the first parents convicted in a u. S. Mass shooting. And you heard that mom say you heard nichole say it shouldnt be Involuntary Manslaughter because the prosecutors fought and won their case that showed the parents failed to safely store a gun and could have prevented the shooting by removing their 15yearold son from school when confronted with his own dark drawing that day. So much there. The mom of Madison Baldwin referenced her daughter as 17 years old, six months, 13 days the last day she saw her. Lets watch as another mom speaks. This passing has touched so many family members, friends, students and community in general. The ripple effects of both jades and jennifers failures to act have devastated us all. This tragedy was completely preventable. If only they had done something, your honor, anything, to shift the course of events on November 30th then our poor angels would be here today and justin would be getting ready to celebrate his 20th birthday on the 18th of this month. If only, your honor, they had taken your son to get counseling instead of buying him a gun. If only they had secured that gun. If only they had spoken up that day in the counseling office. If only they had checked his backpack. If only they had taken him home. Or taken him to counseling. Instead of abandoning him at that school. I wouldnt be standing here today. Your honor, i dont know whats in their hearts, im not a mind reader. But i only know the facts of this case and the facts of this case, both cases, have been deeply disturbing. What i would like to share with the shooters parents is an example of what love looks like between a mother and her son. This is what justin wrote to me on one of the last birthdays that we celebrated together. Dear mom, words cannot describe how thankful i am for you. You have been nothing but an amazing mother for as long as i can remember. Thank you for being a role model, thank you for showing me what it is like to never give up. You inspire me to do better each and every day. I love you so much. Love justin. It is devastating and heartbreaking that it doesnt appear that either of you cherished or even wanted your son. But i wholeheartedly wanted and cherished mine. You have failed your son and you have failed us all. This failure had deadly consequences that can never be undone or made right. I am asking, your honor, for the maximum sentence allowed. Thank you. Thank you for being here. Harris so i want to just pause here because i dont want to step on these parents, these family members. We dont know if they will all be moms at this point. The parents are giving impact statements and theyre powerful. This case is so important because the people on trial are the parents of a mass School Shooter and they are the first patients convicted in a u. S. Mass School Shooting. This is justins father. So we just heard from his mom. Lets watch together. At this time im here to address a different judge and the parents of the deeply disturbed teenager who murdered my son. This is my opportunity to try to describe how much the horrific event that took place on november 30, 2021, has impacted my life. Its my belief that an impact statement should not just describe how this particular event impacted me. I feel i should be impactful to all who hear it. I hope these words impact you in a way that influence your decisions here today. As i look around at all the lawyers, police officers, media folks, and the other victims, i cant help but ask myself what could i possibly say that this whole scenario doesnt already say . This is my son. Most people will never have to make a Victim Impact Statement in their lives. The fact that the victims speaking here today are doing so for the second time in six months should speak volumes in and of itself. This is not normal. Living a life like this is not normal. So how does it affect a normal guy . To be completely honest with you, it remains a rather difficult and uncomfortable question to answer. My impact statement i expressed many of my daytoday struggles from uncontrolled emotional outbreaks to sleepless nights to not being able to focus on normal daily tasks. Yeah, its fair to say that i live every day with pain, anger, heartache, regret, anxiety, stress, you name it. They are all there wreaking havoc in my once normal life they say time heals all wounds. Were coming up on two 1 2 years now and i can assure you the wounds are still as fresh as they were that tragic day. This hole left in my life still is very obvious. [inaudible]. I spent the last 30 years of my life trying to support a family, raise children and set myself up with peace and quiet in the later years of life but the unthinkable happened. The peace and quiet i worked so hard for may never come to be. Not for the grief i always have. Literally every single aspect of my life has been affected by this tragedy. I spent a long time describing in detail how it has impacted me but it seems like it would be easier for me to tell you how this tragedy hasnt affected me. I feel strongly that it has caught the attention of most parents across the country. The overwhelming facts in the case were all that was necessary to prove that james and Jennifer Crumbley not only neglected their son but didnt get the mental care that was clearly needed. Provided him the tools necessary to carry out the heinous acts of violence. It was these very facts that allowed not just one, but two full juries to find them both guilty of Involuntary Manslaughter. I will always maintain the opinion that the facts that were presented in these cases were Strong Enough to convince any jury of their guilt and that the verdict would have been the same regardless of where the trial was held. As i maintained throughout the course of the past couple of years being the parent of a murdered child tends to cause you to seek out the maximum penalties aloud for each guilty verdict from any of the criminal charges. The stance is completely justified and would be so for any parent in the same position as mine. However, this is a court of law where a person is innocent until Proven Guilty and the defendant has a right to speak for the charges against them. That being said during the course of both of these trials, i did my best to capture every word and process all the facts. This is important. Because there is value in these facts. Not just in the thousands and thousands of manhours invested in gathering, processing and organizing the evidence, but also for being able to use that evidence to establish the cold, hard truth of the tragic situation. The james and Jennifer Crumbley failed in their parental responsibilities as it pertains to the shooter who was their son. The cold truth that shows that they did nothing to address the Obvious Deteriateing Mental State Of Mind of their son. The very hard truth that shows that they provided their son with exact will i what he wanted to use to do what he did, failed miserably as parents. An order for somethi of this magnitude to even happen at all, there would have to be a ton o things that went wrong. Although there were some things that definitely went wrong that day, or several of those things i believe that if they had been handled correctly we wouldnt be here right now and james and Jennifer Crumbley carry the bulk of the responsibility to be able to handle those things. During their trials the overall similarities between the two were evident and i believe this is why they were both convicted. Numerous facts that were the same for both trials showed clearly that the parents failed their son and ultimately the entire community. With jennifer, the thing that resonates most is she stated that even knowing what she knew now, she would still wouldnt have changed a thing. I almost cried when she said that. Four precious lives were lost at the hands of her son by the means she helped provide. She saw the drawing from her son. She sat and heard the request of the counselor and did nothing. She still says that she wouldnt have changed a thing. I just dont understand how someone can make a Statement Like that. The blood of our children is on your hands, too. This is one reason why i feel jennifer should receive the maximum amount for her sentence. The facts presented should be all that you should need. For her distinct lack of remorse and overall not understanding of the tragedy i feel the maximum amount of Time Available for her to be able to fully comprehend the gravity of her actions and the lack there of. With james were a couple of things that jumped out at me. One of the things when the verdict was being read he sat there and shook his head in total disagreement. As if to suggest that the jury was wrong and that there were no bounds for a guilty verdict. I was dumbfounded to see him shake his head with such disbelief. Actions truly suggest he didnt think he did anything wrong. How could you possibly think that . Four precious lives were loss at the hands of your son by means that he helped provide. He saw the drawing of the murder, drawn with the hands of his son. He sat and heard the request of the counselor and did nothing. I just dont understand how someone can so arrogantly be full of selfpity without being able to say one thing to justify themselves. The blood of our children is on your hands, too. This is one reason why i feel james should receive the maximum amount for his sentence. The facts presented should be all