Alleged Parkland, Florida college shooter Nikolas Cruz will plead guilty attorneys said Friday on all 17 counts of tried murder and all 17 counts of premeditated homicide.
The 23-year-old suspect, police stated, has confessed to the 2018 massacre of 17 folks at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
ALLEGED FLORIDA SCHOOL SHOOTER NIKOLAS CRUZ TO PLEAD GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS: REPORT
Cruz’s standing listening to in Broward County Circuit Court docket earlier than Circuit Decide Elizabeth Scherer was scheduled abruptly on Thursday.
In line with the South Florida Sun Sentinel, whereas his attorneys have been current for the listening to, Cruz was not and pleas can be entered at a later date.
The responsible plea avoids a prolonged trial and Cruz will nonetheless face a jury to find out whether or not he will get the dying penalty or life in jail, based on the report.
Parkland college shooter Nikolas Cruz holds his head in courtroom throughout day two of jury choice in his trial on the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. on Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2021, on 4 felony counts stemming from his alleged assault on a Broward jail guard in November 2018. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Solar Sentinel by way of AP, Pool)
“We’ve got to refer your whole inquiries to the protection,” the Broward County state lawyer’s workplace stated Thursday night time. “There have been no plea negotiations with the prosecution. If he pleads responsible, there would nonetheless be a penalty section.”
Cruz was arrested on Valentine’s Day 2018 about an hour after the assault with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle.
DOZENS FAILED TO REPORT NIKOLAS CRUZ’S ‘TROUBLING BEHAVIOR’ UNTIL AFTER PARKLAND: REPORT
The shootings led to nationwide protests towards gun violence, together with the “March for Our Lives,” along with new gun control legislation.
His attorneys have beforehand supplied to plead responsible in trade for a assured sentence of life in jail. Nevertheless, state prosecutors have been dogged of their pursuit of the dying penalty.
A big a part of the penalty section would seemingly give attention to Cruz’s psychological situation on the time of the killings.
“There’s little or no doubt he murdered my lovely daughter, Gina, or the 16 different victims,” Tony Montalto, president of the Stand With Parkland group that represents the households of the victims, informed The Related Press on Thursday. “There’s little or no doubt he shot the opposite 17 folks and terrorized all the opposite college students on the college. We simply hope the system provides him justice.”
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WSVN-Channel 7 reported Thursday that Cruz would additionally plead responsible to battery on Broward County jail guard Sgt. Raymond Beltran in November of that yr, for which there’ll now be no trial.
Cruz was in courtroom earlier this month for the one depend of tried felony battery and three lesser prices throughout a preliminary stage of jury selection.
The Related Press contributed to this report.
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