GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Nov. 30 marks three years since a shooting at Oxford High School on Michigan's east side claimed the lives of four students.
But even with the time that has passed, the families of the victims of the shooting say their fight has continued.
While both the shooter and his parents have since been sentenced in connection to the events of that day in 2021, these families are still asking for change.
It was for that reason that the families of the four teens killed in the shooting - Madisyn Baldwin, Tate Myre, Hana St. Juliana and Justin Shilling - alongside the mother of another student witness to the attack, called a news conference Monday morning.
"We are calling on the state to undertake a full, thorough investigation - not just for the families impacted, but for every family, every student and every school across Michigan and the country," said Trent Myre, the brother of Oxford student Tate Myre who was killed in the attack.
While a third-party investigation conducted by Guidepost Solutions has already been done at the school district, the families are now calling for a state investigation - one meant at pulling together data and informing school safety countermeasures, not necessarily at identifying potential prosecutions.
"That's what the attorney general continues to get wrong on this," said Steve St. Juliana, the father of Hana St. Juliana who was also killed at Oxford. "While that is a part of the story, the bigger piece, and what we're talking about today, is to drive the change to change the future."
State Attorney General Dana Nessel responded in a press call Monday afternoon.
"We share in the family's fatigue over the constant finger-pointing and scapegoating in these investigations, and wish our offers to participate at any level have been accepted years ago," Nessel told reporters.
The families indicated that they've tried to remove the purported hurdles for the investigation to happen, including receiving what St. Juliana said was a memo from Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald.
"[McDonald] provided me with a memorandum laying out the reasons why her office believes the [Nessel] does have the authority to conduct an investigation," St. Juliana said.
Following both the families' news conference and Nessel's response, McDonald's office released the following statement, attributed to McDonald:
"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."
Prior to that release, Nessel said the circumstances leave more questions than answers, including questions to McDonald.
"I would just ask her, 'What civil authority do we have to do the things that you think we need to do?'" Nessel said. "'And if we have authority only through the criminal statutes, why did you not do that?'"
But as for the families, what do they hope could be answered?
"Since the Guidepost report is not recognized by our state, these surrounding schools can't use that to drive the change," said Tate Myers' father, Buck. "They won't even recognize it. So, this is why we need a state investigation so it gets recognized by our schools and we can drive change."