man will never be satisfied ♪ ♪ could you be loved could you be could you be loved could you be ♪ ♪ love your brother man ♪ ♪ could you be could you be loved could you be could you be loved ♪ ♪ say something reggae-reggae say something rockin' rockin' ♪ ♪ say something reggae-reggae say something rockin' rockin' ♪ ♪ say something reggae-reggae say something ♪ [ cheers and applause ] this is "nightline." >> tonight -- we find the defendant guilty. >> michigan set the precedent for the first parent being

convicted of involuntary manslaughter. >> byron: the families of those lost speaking out. >> hopefully it's a makeup call for people to start taking further responsibility, especially within their own family. >> byron: the trial's shocking revelations. >> what did you tell police about your relationships? >> extramarital affair. >> byron: what the jury is saying and what parents need to know about this first of its kind verdict. plus mascot mania. as super bowl preps get under way, the mascots making man in the background. >> they're not clowns. they're making people feel better. >> byron: behind the scenes with pro sport's most famous, philly's gritty. >> he knows i'm from boston, i think that's what it is. >> byron: and the boot camp with the next generation of mascots making furry fun their future. >> you could make close to $1 million a year. >> byron: also -- ♪ red solo cup ♪ >> byron: remembering singer toby keith, whose monster hits like "red solo cup" made him a

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♪ >> byron: good evening. thank you for joining us. history was made today when michigan mother jennifer crumbley became the first parent of a school shooter found guilty in connection to her child's

crime. with guns the leading cause of death for kids and teens, could this verdict make a difference? >> we find the defendant guilty of involuntary manslaughter. >> byron: in this michigan courtroom, an unprecedented verdict. a jury holding a mother responsible for a son's deadly school shooting. the first of its kind. jennifer crumbley, the mother of ethan crumbley, found guilty of four counts of involuntary manslaughter. one for each of her son's four victims. high school students madisyn baldwin, tate near, hanna st. julianna, and justin shilling. >> there were several family members of the victims of the school shooting who were in court, not just for the verdict but every single day of this trial, listening to all the evidence, listening to the testimony, the closing arguments. you can see that sense of relief when the verdict finally came down, they got those guilty verdicts. >> justin's father was in the courtroom when the verdict was read. >> it's not really a good feeling. it's not really about winning or

losing. it's about making it apparent that, you know, this has to stop. >> byron: the family saying they hope this verdict sends a message. >> our children are never coming home. and everything that we're doing right now is focused on forcing account ability across the board. it's not a matter of if this happens again, it's a matter of when. >> byron: the case becoming a battleground in the debate over parental responsibility amid america's gun epidemic and school shootings. >> we've seen cases like the virginia 6-year-old who shot their teacher and the parent was held liable in some regard. in the highland park case where the father was found guilty after a plea of reckless conduct. but in this case, michigan set the precedent for the first parent being convicted of involuntary manslaughter. the jennifer crumbley case creates a brightline rule to say, this is the standard. >> byron: jennifer's son ethan was 15 when he used a gun

purchase d by his parents to carry out the deadliest school shooting in michigan's history in 2021. >> i am a really bad person. i have been terrible things that no one should ever do. >> byron: ethan pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life without parole. it's been jennifer crumbley's trial which has been drawing attention over the last month. >> jennifer crumbley dt pull the trigger that day, but she is responsible for those deaths. >> byron: prosecutors ticking through the many opportunities they say she had to prevent the deadly shooting. >> that's what this case is about. it's about jennifer crumbley's willful disregard of the danger that she knew of. >> byron: painting the picture of a negligent mother more consumed with her horses and multiple extramarital affairs than her son's deteriorating mental health. >> the defense played very strongly into jennifer crumbley being a hypervigilant mother, a helicopter mother. but when the evidence came out that she was spending $20,000 on a horse, taking care of it. when she had not just one

extramarital affair of a man who testified on the stand was also going through adult friend finder to find others, it pulled apart from her credibility of saying, you're not hypervigilant, you're off doing other things. >> byron: one of her alleged lovers testifying for the prosecution. >> what did you tell the police about your relationship with jennifer crumbley? what did you tell the police? >> extramarital affair. >> byron: the prosecution arguing jennifer made time for her lover but ignored her son's cries for help. >> her son texted her about how he was seeing demons, how he believed the house was hunted. jennifer crumbley didn't reply. he would write," can you at least text back?" the prosecution used that to argue, she wasn't paying attention to her son. >> byron: prosecutors pointing to ethan's journal entries. "i have zero help for my mental problems, and it's causing me to shoot up the school." and, "i want help but my parents don't listen to me, so i can't get my help." the defense countered that jennifer was like any other busy

mom and the blame laid elsewhere. >> she's not a perfect person or a perfect parent. >> byron: arguing this could set a dangerous precedent for other parents. >> i am asking that you find jennifer crumbley not guilty, not gist for jennifer crumbley, but for every mother who's out there doing the best they can, who could easily be in her shoes. >> the defense see the said it eloquently. don't just find jennifer crumbley not guilty for her, but for every other hard-working mother. that's trying to nullify the jury to say, morally she and no mother should be found guilty of this. >> byron: jennifer taking the stand in her own defense, saying before the shooting, she had no reason to believe her son was dangerous. >> i look back after this all happened, and i've asked myself if i would have done anything differently. and i wouldn't have. i wish he would have killed us instead. >> byron: her defense attorney asking -- >> are you a failure as a

parent? >> i don't think i'm a failure as a parent. >> byron: the prosecution walked the jury through the day of the shooting. surveillance video showing the parents at the school for a meeting with their son and counselor after a teacher discovered disturbing drawings on his math worksheet. that meeting with the school lasting just 11 minutes. no one checking the shooter's backpack for a gun. within hours, he would open fire. teacher molly darnell in tears describe the moment she was shot. >> i locked eyes. he didn't hesitate. >> byron: jennifer's husband calling 911 when he discovered the handgun he'd purchased for his son was missing. >> i think my son took the gun. i don't know if it's him, i don't know whats going on, i'm really freaking out. >> byron: searching the crumbley home, detectives discovered these gun range targets with bullet holes on the walls of the shooter's bedroom, an empty bottle of whiskey next to the then 15-year-old's bed. in the master bedroom, an open gun case next to an empty box of

ammunition for a 9-millimeter handgun. inside the tv stand, two other weapons found locked in a gun safe, prosecutors noting the code. >> what was it? >> 000. >> byron: the prosecutors showing this video, crumbley taking her son to the firing range. >> you're the last adult to have possession of that gun? >> correct. >> byron: the jury foreperson saying after the verdict, the thing that hammered it open is that she was the last adult with the gun. >> this is not a place where guns are taboo or something you never hear of or see. a lot of people grew up with them. also gun security is part of that. >> jennifer crumbley faces 15 years each on the four involuntary manslaughter charges, but that's only if the judge consecutively charges her with all of them. it's very unlikely. she's probably looking, if she's a first-time offender of something closer to three to five years in prison, because of michigan's sentencing guidelines. >> byron: jennifer's husband james is facing identical

charges in a separate trial that's expected to begin next month. the families of those lost keeping their loved ones front and center in their fight for justice. >> you know, we're trying to bring beauty from ashes here. and we don't want any family to ever go through this. this is just pure torture and hell. >> byron: when we come back, as we count down to super bowl sunday, meet some of the professionals tasked with whipping fans into a frenzy. it's mascot mania. with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis, my skin was no longer mine. my active psoriatic arthritis joint symptoms held me back. don't let symptoms define you. emerge as you. with tremfya®, most people saw 90% clearer skin at 4 months... ...and the majority stayed clearer, at 5 years. tremfya® is proven to significantly reduce joint pain, stiffness and swelling it's just 6 doses a year, after 2 starter doses.

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>> byron: welcome back. acting, antics, and athleticism. some of what it takes to welcome a professional sports mascot. many who do it consider it a calling. those who do it well are regarded with fans, followers, and dollars. lots of dollars. here's abc's ashan singh. >> reporter: feats like these to america's sports obsession. >> caught by kelce for the touchdown! >> reporter: from the holmes-kelce connection propelling the chiefs to the super bowl, coco gauff's blistering backhand winning the u.s. open last summer, even the debut of the san antonio spurs rookie sensation. >> the first points in the career of victor wembanyama. >> reporter: but this isn't about the big shots. it's about these guys. behind the big moments. team mascots. you can't help but notice the phillie phanatic, bennie the

bull, casey wolf, billy buffalo, and hundreds more. some have been around for decades. while others just pop up. and break the internet. >> mascots spread joy. that's their job. if the mascot helped provide even a little bit of a good experience during that game, that's what you're going to remember anyway. >> reporter: they're much more than furry creatures doing silly moves. inside every costume is a full-fledged performer. some, like the san antonio spurs' coyote, displaying athleticism rivaling players on their teams. amassing huge followings all their own. and some are cashing in. big. at the very top, rocky the mountain lion, the denver nuggets' mascot, reportedly making $625,000 a year. followed by the atlanta hawks' harry the hawk at $600,000. that's just their salary. >> you could make close to $1 million a year if you're -- just for the game day, then side gigs

too. mascots are a huge deal. it's brand extension. if you've got the mascot out in the marketplace, that is adding more and more eyeballs to your product. >> reporter: in the world of major league mascots, it doesn't get much bigger than gritty. with over 2 million followers on social media. beyond the rink, he's quickly become one of the faces of the city. even appearing on abc's "abbott elementary." >> this is a cute picture, though. >> reporter: do people love gritty more than any other mascot? you make me happy, that's for sure. i've been smiling as soon as you walked into this interview. it's no easy feat speaking with a 7-foot-tall creature who can only gesture for answers. after asking one too many questions, i quickly lose cool points with gritty. he knows i'm from boston. i think that's what it is.

dude, i'm out of here. oh, brother. no one knows the hard work it takes to reach gritty's level of fame better than his creator, dave raymond. >> you know when you've done a good job when the rest of the mascots in the nhl are a little jealous. >> reporter: are the rest of the mascots jealous of gritty? >> that's only going to level other people up. they're going to say, we need to be as good as. and gritty is one of the place-holders, the fanatic is one of the place-holders. >> reporter: dave raymond. >> i am the fanatic's best friend. >> the original phillie phanatic from 1978 to 1993, a pioneer who wrote the blueprint for the mascots who followed. >> the fanatic was the first team-created concept that they treated like the most important marketing decision they could make. >> reporter: since then at the forefront of shaping mascoting

into a thriving career and business model. >> the first step always is, show me the backstory. where are they from? how did they get here? the only way you can get people to care is to tell a story that comes right from you. >> nice to see you. >> i hope that this experience is going to be really hardcore. >> reporter: creating that backstory is key when dave hosts his annual mascot boot camp. the so-called fraternity of characters. getting to know others like them. >> i am well known as a mascot performer for the lake elsinore storm. >> i perform as hoodie the mustling owl for the oregon institute of technology. >> buster, we associate him as the cousin of the fanatic. >> i am the mascot and entertainment manager for the richmond pine squirrels. >> reporter: gathered across the country for three intention days of training, to learn the secrets of their craft. >> you have to invest in a good performer, a great costume. >> reporter: from the practical --

>> let's talk about hydrating, using ice, drinking water. >> reporter: to the musical. even the philosophical. >> this is important work you do. this isn't just silly furiness. they're changing people's days, making people feel better. >> reporter: in addition to having a strong backstory, a good mascot has to become a fearless performer. by getting comfortable with the uncomfortable. >> i ran out of breath. >> so did i. >> the screaming felt a little too long. but it's exhilarating. >> so the reason why we do this is just to make you feel weird. because there are going to be things you're going to be asked to do in acting that is out of your comfort zone. >> reporter: another important part of the craft -- suiting up. what happens when you put on that suit? >> i can be myself. the barrier that stands between me being myself just finally falls down. and it's just unbridled joy for me that i can hopefully ignite

into someone else. >> reporter: while i'm practicing in a suit filled with air -- >> then the floss. >> reporter: the mass coats act out complicated skits, dance, and do tricks in costumes weighing upwards of 40 pounds and make it look effortless. this is a lot of work, man. what separates, to you, a good performer, because they're all good, from a great performer? >> it's mostly nonverbal communication and their ability to move in a way that you remember them. >> reporter: mascots who have carved out a name for themselves end up here at the mascot hall of fame in the small city of whiting, indiana. what is it about mascots that you guys wanted to bring that to your city? >> it's just unique. obviously it's the only place like that in the country. it's a unique draw, for sure. >> this is our winners display. you can see here who they are. when they were inducted. what their species is. >> wow. a sphere road humanoid.

i always wondered. >> reporter: the hall of fame is also an interactive museum designed for kids of all ages. >> basically, you walk through our exhibit area and you learn what it takes to be a mascot. >> reporter: today, visitors are in for a treat. dave puts his class to the test at a birthday party. the mascots win the audience over one smile and one selfie at a time. >> they just connect on this emotional level. and you forget about whatever's going on bad for a few minutes. >> my dream is to have hootie inducted into the mascot hall of fame. i am so proud of the work that i've done with him. >> reporter: justin, or minnie thunder, just 17, has nba dreams with an acceptance to college in oregon and a mascot gig waiting for him there. he's on his way. >> i started seeing all these big mascots, i was like, whoa, that's what i want to do. >> i would like to hopefully one day, if i'm blessed enough to be

the phillie phanatic, i would love to bring female energy into philly. >> reporter: regardless of the score, dave says it's the mascots that are making the memories. >> what mascots do is serious fun. this is something that can change lives. we've got to make sure we recognize how important fun is in our lives. not just to take a break, but to be better mentally and physically. >> byron: our thanks to ashan. when we come back, remembering the country music singer who said he should have been a cowboy. toby keith. ♪ singing those campfire songs whoa i should have been a cowboy ♪ if you're living with hiv, imagine being good to go without daily hiv pills. good to go binge-watch. good to go out even later. with cabenuva, there's no pausing for daily hiv pills. for adults who are undetectable,

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♪ >> byron: finally tonight, country's toby keith has died of stomach cancer. ♪ i should have been a cowboy ♪ >> byron: he first signed to a record label in his 30s. his first big break, "i should have been a cowboy," toby keith had 60 hit singles on the country chart, 20 number one hits, 40 million albums sold. his lyrics weaving life, truth, and humor. ♪ let's have a party ♪ >> byron: in 2002 he wrote, "courtesy of the red, white and blue." ♪ ♪ of the red, white and blue ♪ >> byron: after 9/11, honoring his father, a disabled veteran. this is what toby keith said about cancer. >> you can't let it define your future. you have to keep looking for&ard and going. >> byron: tony keith was 62. our condolences t