OXFORD, Mich. – The families from the Oxford High School shooting are demanding a new investigation into the actions of school officials prior to four students being killed and seven others being injured.
Hana St. Juliana, Justin Shilling, Madisyn Baldwin, and Tate Myre, were killed in the Oxford High School shooting on Nov. 30, 2021. A third-party report released in 2023 claimed the shooting could have been prevented.
The families of the victims of the Nov. 30, 2021 shooting held a press conference on Monday, Nov. 18, where they urged Michigan lawmakers to mandate and fund a new investigation into the events leading up to the shooting.
The full press conference can be watched in the video player above.
It has been almost three years to the day since the shooting and the families said they are nowhere near close to understanding what led up to the deadly shooting.
The prior report into the shooting allegedly lacked subpoena power and many school employees were advised by attorneys to not participate, which left crucial questions unanswered. The only government investigations regarding the shooting were into the shooter and his parents.
While the shooter and his parents have been sentenced, there has yet to have been a state-led investigation. They said a new investigation would reveal systemic failures that allowed the shooting to happen.
The message of Monday’s press conference was clear: If nothing is learned from the tragic shooting, it will happen again.
Buck Myer, the father of 16-year-old Tate Myer, has been vocal about wanting accountability and changes that could prevent another tragedy since the shooting nearly three years ago. Monday was no different.
“Not once have you asked the victims' families how they are doing, not once have you asked the kids who were at school that day how they are doing and what do they need. Not once,” said Myre. “You haven’t asked anybody any questions to evaluate yourself -- before, during or after. Not one question to see how good of a job you’re doing. If you’re not interested in preventing gun violence and you’re not interested in supporting the victims and communities after gun violence, why do you exist? Why are you here?”
The families believe that an investigation would reveal new information that could drive change.
“We really don’t care about the mechanics of exactly how this investigation gets done. Frankly, we’re tired of the back-and-forth of the government agencies saying, ‘Oh, you should have done this,’ or ‘You should do that, we don’t have authority.' We’re done with that,” said Steve St. Juliana, the father of 14-year-old Hana St. Juliana. “We don’t care. Get the job done. It has been three years of excuses.”
St. Juliana said gun violence in schools is a growing epidemic and pointed to the rise in shootings every year since the Columbine High School massacre in 1999.
“It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when. This will happen again,” St. Juliana said. “Even if this can’t be prevented, if we can come up with countermeasures that at least limit the scope, limit the aftermath, then this will all be worth it.”
The families said that they’re hopeful that Oxford Community Schools having a new superintendent and new school board members would help drive a new investigation. They called on lawmakers across the state -- from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to Attorney General Dana Nessel -- to find out what happened before and after the shooting.
Both the Oakland County Sheriff and Prosecutor released statements after the press conference in support of a larger investigation.
“As we have said from the beginning, we are more than willing to participate in any state review or investigation. I told the victims of this tragedy I would support any effort that would answer all questions they have. If the Attorney General would like access to our investigative reports or our people, I will happily provide them.
Our hope is that this would be a whole of government systemic review which includes mental health, school and public safety entities to see if there are lessons we can learn to prevent such tragedies rather than responding to them.”
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard
“From the very beginning, I have supported the parents of Hana St. Juliana, Justin Shilling, Madisyn Baldwin, and Tate Myre in their call for a comprehensive, state-led investigation into the shooting at Oxford High School.
As indicated in my memo to the families, there is a difference between the role of a prosecutor, who is an advocate, and that of the police and other investigators, who gather evidence. My office does not have the authority to conduct the investigation the families have asked for. The Attorney General does.
We are not aware of any mechanism for our office to refer a matter to the Attorney General’s office when it has not been presented to our office. And what the families are asking for is much broader. We are not aware of any action needed by my office to activate the Attorney General’s authority, but we will do everything possible to enable such an investigation. And my office will fully cooperate with any such investigation.
There is so much we can learn, and we owe it to the students who were killed and those who were injured, their families, the Oxford community, and our children to do everything we can to prevent future shootings. An independent investigation remains a critical, missing piece in that process."
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald
The Governor’s Office released the following statement after the press conference:
“As Michiganders, we have a responsibility to do everything we can to protect each other from gun violence. That’s why Governor Whitmer has supported an independent review of the shooting to ensure that families have answers to their questions and to help school districts around the state better protect students.
After the shooting, the State of Michigan immediately launched a review of our state’s gun violence prevention policies. This led to commonsense legislation signed into law by Governor Whitmer that will keep students safe by ensuring firearms are stored safely so children can’t access them, requiring background checks to keep guns out of the hands of criminals, and established extreme risk protection orders to ensure people who have been deemed a threat to themselves or others can’t access dangerous weapons.
By working together, in partnership with the families of the four Oxford students, we can reduce gun violence and save lives.”
Press Secretary Stacey LaRouche
