⚖️ Overview, this is just the beginning 0.1% of what is available is shown here. More to come.

Welcome to the official archive documenting The People of the State of Michigan v. Jacob Cronick — a controversial and emotionally charged criminal case involving a shooting in Delta County, Michigan. This site is dedicated to transparency, access to public records, and ensuring that the facts are preserved and publicly accessible.

At the center of this case is the shooting of Eric Parrotta, which ended in a hung jury. This domain exists to serve as a public information hub and archive of legal documents, evidence, and commentary for all interested in the pursuit of truth and justice.

🎥 Key Video Clip: The Altercation and Shooting

A pivotal moment in the case is captured in surveillance footage and eyewitness accounts:

Eric Parrotta knocks the phone from Jacob Cronick’s hand.
Jacob lifts Eric off the ground and slams him against the hood of a truck.
Eric steps back, leaning on the vehicle, joined by Alexandria Parrotta.
Cody Richards and John Parrotta continue a scuffle nearby.
Jacob appears to retreat but returns with a firearm.
He knocks Cody Richards to the ground.
Pushes Alexandria Parrotta down with a gun in her face.
John Parrotta steps in between the gun and his family.
Jacob moves past him and shoots Eric Parrotta, then continues advancing.

Opinion Behavioral Analysis of Jacob Cronick in this clip.

0–10 Seconds: Initial Encounter

The shooter appears engaged in a verbal and possibly physical confrontation. His body language is tense but not yet escalated to violence.

Alternatives:

Step back from the situation
Verbally de-escalate and request space
Call for help or notify others nearby

11–20 Seconds: Physical Engagement

The shooter is physically involved—possibly restrained. He may feel panic, but he is not under immediate deadly threat.

Alternatives:

Attempt to break free and retreat
Shout for others to help or intervene
Avoid escalation to weapon use

21–30 Seconds: Repositioning & Weapon Retrieval

The shooter gains distance and appears to retrieve a weapon. He is no longer being restrained—this is a decision point.

Alternatives:

Leave the scene entirely
Display weapon only if needed as a deterrent
Call 911 instead of escalating

31–45 Seconds: Weapon Brandishing and Aggression

With the weapon visible, the shooter aggressively pushes or threatens unarmed individuals. He is now the aggressor.

Alternatives:

Keep weapon pointed down
Use verbal commands to establish space
Retreat while visibly calling for help

46–55 Seconds: Physical Force with Weapon

The shooter makes contact using the weapon, knocking people down. This is highly aggressive behavior against unarmed parties.

Alternatives:

Back off and avoid contact
Give warnings verbally
Only use weapon if facing immediate deadly threat

56–67 Seconds: The Shooting

The shooter fires on Eric Parrotta, who was unarmed and not actively attacking. This is a serious escalation with no justification under self-defense law.

Alternatives:

Do not re-engage after retreat
Do not fire unless faced with direct deadly force
Wait for law enforcement response

Estimated Distance

I used a software program called Digimizer, which provides tools for manual measurements (point-to-point, calipers, curves, etc.) and automatic object detection and measurement in images. This calculauted the pixel distance between Jacob and Eric, it then was converted to an approximate real-world distance using the truck as a reference (standard pickup truck length is typically about 18 feet or 5.5 meters). Based on the visual measurement and using the truck length as a reference, Jacob Cronick was approximately 15.8 feet away from Eric Parrotta at the time he appeared to be drawing his firearm. At nearly 16 feet, Eric Parrotta posed no immediate physical threat at that moment. This distance reinforces that lethal force was not necessary, as Jacob had time and space to retreat or de-escalate.

Summary: What Could Have Been Done Instead?

Retreat: Multiple chances to walk away were ignored
De-escalate: Words and distance could have avoided this.
Call for help: Would have shown good intent and helped prevent violence
Show restraint: Use of a gun must be proportional and legal

Conclusion: At every stage, the shooter had options to choose peace. Instead, he made calculated decisions that escalated to a shooting of an unarmed man. This was preventable.

🤔What’s interesting is that Jacob thought Eric had a firearm, but also testified under oath that the green blob was his biggest threat, but goes after the black blob, It wasn’t found out until 13 months later, on the stand that he “thought” my father had a firearm. He never told the arresting officers, investigative officers or the prosecutions office that’s what he thought. It just “slipped” his memory. Isn’t that something you’d remember if you were involved in a firearm incident? Officer Groleau said in his career he has never heard that. They always remeber.

📁 Coming soon – What You’ll Find on This Site

Entire court transcripts daiting all the way back to September 2024. With a cost of over $6,000
Police reports, FOIA documents, and trial exhibits. With cost of over $2,000 and climbing.
Breakdown of the trial and jury outcome
Court filings, prosecutor statistics, and witness statements
Legal commentary and evidence summaries
Timeline of events and post-trial developments

❗ Why This Matters

The public has a right to understand how our justice system handles cases involving deadly force and complex family dynamics. This archive exists to shed light on legal proceedings, hold institutions accountable, and preserve public access to the facts — especially in a case still unresolved. Alexandria Parrotta also still legally owned the property at this time.