In the ongoing manslaughter trial of James Crumbley, father of the Oxford High School shooter Ethan Crumbley, new developments have emerged. The Oakland County Sheriff's Office confirmed on Friday that James Crumbley had made threatening statements through phone and electronic messages while in custody.

As a result, the sheriff's office has limited Crumbley's access to the jailhouse phone primarily for communication with his attorney. The nature of the threats and their intended targets has not been disclosed by authorities.

During Thursday's trial proceedings, the issue of Crumbley's threatening communications came to light. However, attorneys refrained from revealing any details about the messages in open court. Following the dismissal of the jury on Thursday afternoon, prosecutors requested that Crumbley's communications be restricted only to his counsel and legitimate clergy for the remainder of the trial.

After facing pushback from Crumbley's attorney, an agreement was reached between the prosecution and defense. While Crumbley's communications will be revoked, he will still have the ability to read and gather information for his own defense. Oakland County Chief Assistant Prosecutor David Williams clarified that these restrictions would remain in place until a verdict is reached.

In addition to the revelation about the threatening messages, the trial also saw forensic analyst Edward Wagrowski presenting cell phone data that detailed James Crumbley's actions leading up to the tragic school shooting. According to Wagrowski's testimony, James Crumbley dropped off his son Ethan at Oxford High School at 7:46 a.m. before returning home at 8:04 a.m.

Further analysis showed that at 9:04 a.m., James Crumbley's location data placed him at a horse barn. At 9:33 a.m., Jennifer Crumbley, James' wife, messaged him urgently, requesting him to call as there was an emergency. She also sent him photos of their son's disturbing math worksheet, which had drawings depicting violence and expressions of distress.

During the morning, a teacher had found Ethan's drawing at school, illustrating a gun and a person bleeding, accompanied by distressing statements. James Crumbley responded to his wife's messages at 9:44 a.m., expressing shock and mentioning his wait for the horse's veterinarian.

Wagrowski's testimony revealed that James Crumbley left the barn at 9:38 a.m. and did not return home before heading to the school. Cell phone records indicated that at 10:29 a.m., James and Jennifer Crumbley spoke on the phone for approximately seven minutes. Surveillance footage showed the parents entering the school around 10:38 a.m. and spending approximately 12 minutes in the counselor's office.

During this meeting, the Crumbleys were advised to take their son home and seek immediate mental health treatment. However, they declined the suggestion, as disclosed by the counselor's testimony during Jennifer Crumbley's trial.

Subsequent cell phone data indicated that at 11 a.m., James Crumbley began working as a delivery driver for DoorDash, taking up multiple orders without returning home. At 1:09 p.m., the school issued an email stating an "Active Emergency at OHS." James Crumbley called his son twice, at 1:13 p.m. and 1:17 p.m. Shortly after, he contacted his wife, and they had multiple phone conversations before James Crumbley called 911 at 1:34 p.m.

The investigator, Wagrowski, also highlighted Ethan Crumbley's text conversations with a friend in the months leading up to the shooting. In over 20,000 texts exchanged between January and October 2021, Ethan expressed concerns about his mental health and even shared a video of himself handling a loaded gun. Notably, Ethan had very limited text exchanges with others during the same period.

These developments shed further light on the series of events leading up to the tragic shooting at Oxford High School. As the trial continues, the revelations about James Crumbley's threatening statements and the timeline of both parents' actions will likely have a significant impact on the proceedings.