Terror, trauma and an entire family on trial in the aftermath of another US school shooting

Her social-media post sounded innocent and festive: “Mom & son day testing out his new Xmas present.”

But there was nothing innocent about the gift Jennifer Crumbley and her husband, James, bought their son, Ethan, at a Black Friday sale. It was a Sig Sauer 9mm semi-automatic pistol – and Ethan was just 15, three years younger than the legal age teens in America are allowed to own firearms.

Shortly after he received the gun, Ethan posted a picture of it on Instagram with a heart emoji and a caption that read, “just got my new beauty today. Ask any questions I will answer.”