Dad of Highland Park shooting suspect pleads not guilty to reckless conduct charges

The father of the suspected Highland Park, Illinois, mass shooter pleaded not guilty Thursday after he was indicted by a grand jury on seven counts of reckless conduct, according to the county prosecutor.

Robert Crimo Jr. is accused of signing the Firearm Owner's Identification card for his son, Robert Crimo III, to apply for gun ownership. The younger Crimo was 19 at the time and and too young to get a FOID card on his own. Illinois at the time required people ages 18, 19 or 20 to have parent or guardian authorization.

"Parents who help their kids get weapons of war are morally and legally responsible when those kids hurt others with those weapons," Lake County State's Attorney Eric Rinehart said in a statement Wednesday.

Robert Crimo III is accused of killing seven people and injuring dozens of others in the mass shooting at a 2022 Fourth of July parade in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park.

Crimo Jr. told ABC News after the shooting, "I filled out the consent form to allow my son to go through the process that the Illinois State Police have in place for an individual to obtain a FOID card."

"They do background checks. Whatever that entails, I'm not exactly sure. And either you're approved or denied, and he was approved," he said.

"Signing a consent form to go through the process ... that's all it was," Crimo Jr. said of his involvement. "Had I purchased guns throughout the years and given them to him in my name, that's a different story. But he went through that whole process himself."

Robert Crimo III has pleaded not guilty to charges including murder and attempted murder.