The man who police say shot and killed three Michigan State University students and critically injured another five on Monday night was charged in 2019 with a gun-related felony, but through a plea agreement, the charge was dismissed and the suspect instead pled guilty to a misdemeanor.
Anthony McRae, 43, who Michigan State University police say opened fire on the Michigan students before turning a gun on himself, had the prior run-in with the law in June 2019.
At the time, according to court records and the Ingham County prosecutor, the now-deceased gunman had been searched by police and was found to be carrying a concealed handgun without a concealed carry permit, which is a state felony.
The court records show that McRae entered a plea agreement in October 2019 in which the felony charge, which carried a maximum prison sentence of five years, was dismissed.
McRae instead pled guilty to a lesser charge, added to his record in October 2019, for possession of a loaded firearm in or upon a vehicle and received a sentence of 12 months probation, which concluded in May 2021.
The plea agreement was made with the office of then-Ingham County Prosecuting Attorney Carol Siemon.
Siemon, a Democrat, has promoted or been directly affiliated with various left-wing causes, such as the Vera Institute’s push for “racial equity” in law enforcement and the liberal Brennan Center. She supported Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the 2020 election, according to her Facebook page.
When Siemon announced she would retire from her role as prosecutor in the middle of her term last year, the Detroit News detailed the soft-on-crime criticisms Siemon had faced during her tenure, such as “offering plea deals to everyone”:
Siemon has been the elected prosecutor for the Lansing area for six years and has faced criticism for her handling of sexual assault cases involving Michigan State University athletes, her policies on offering plea deals to everyone, including people charged with murder, and her policies on not charging gun and drug offenses that stemmed from pretextual traffic stops.
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Her office lowered the number of people incarcerated for crimes in the county, according to data provided by Siemon’s office.
Two of the Lansing area’s top law enforcement officials issued a brutal denouncement of Seimon’s policy changes in 2021, saying that, under Siemon, more of their drug and weapons warrant requests were getting denied.
Ingham County Sheriff Scott Wrigglesworth, a Democrat, was one of the critics. Wrigglesworth said at the time, per the Detroit News, “If we stop someone with an illegal gun, and the prosecutor refuses to issue charges, that’s another criminal with a gun being released into the community. I’m trying to figure out how that’s good for the community.”
Wrigglesworth added, “This is personal to me because I know this policy is going to get someone killed. … And we’re the ones who’ll have to try to comfort the grieving family members.”
Later, in the midst of a double murder trial in November 2022, Judge Rosemarie Aquilina tore into Siemon for her seemingly relatively light criminal punishments, saying, “She is not a legislator, she is not a judge. And she is making our community unsafe,” according to local outlet WLNS.
Breitbart News reached out to Siemon for comment through her Facebook page but did not receive a response.
Police investigate the scene of a shooting at Berkey Hall on the campus of Michigan State University, late Monday, February 13, 2023, in East Lansing. (AP Photo/Al Goldis)
Ingham County’s current prosecuting attorney, John Dewane, who succeeded Siemon, acknowledged the Michigan State University tragedy in a statement Tuesday and released details about McRae’s one court case in the county.
Dewane noted that had McRae been convicted of the initial felony charge instead of the misdemeanor, McRae would still “not have been recommended for a jail or prison sentence.” He said it was “a routine matter in nearly all criminal cases that the recommended sentence is not the same as the legal maximum.”
Dewane, however, told the Washington Free Beacon that “McRae would not have been able to legally purchase, own, or possess a firearm” if he had “been convicted of carrying a concealed weapon.”
While police have said the investigation into the shooting remains ongoing, police in Michigan informed Ewing police in New Jersey, where McRae once lived, that police had found a note with McRae indicating a threat to two Ewing schools, according to the Detroit News.
Ewing police investigated the matter, per the News, and found that McRae had a “history of mental health issues.”
Additionally, per the outlet, McRae’s father said he believes McRae may have purchased the gun used Monday at a pawn shop, but it is unclear if the purchase, if it did occur, was carried out legally.
Write to Ashley Oliver at aoliver@breitbart.com. Follow her on Twitter at @asholiver.