|
Post by Kate on Aug 18, 2021 9:21:54 GMT -5
I haven't really been keeping up with this case, but this caught my attention because it's like the behavior of the "afflicted girls" during the Salem Witch Trials.
|
|
|
Post by steve on Aug 18, 2021 20:53:46 GMT -5
I haven't really been keeping up with this case, but this caught my attention because it's like the behavior of the "afflicted girls" during the Salem Witch Trials. That's very interesting. Something that I noticed was that he acts up at times, but at other times, like when he's in JROTC, he is described as "well behaved, respectful and polite." I don't know much about psychology and human behavior, but it seems that he's able to behave himself and act normal when he wants to and this leads me to believe that his crazy act is just that, an "act."
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Aug 20, 2021 19:42:50 GMT -5
‘Cowardly’ Resource Officer to Face Jury
Circuit Judge Martin Fein has decided Scot Peterson, 58, the “cowardly” school resource officer on duty at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School the day Nikolas Cruz shot and killed 17 people and wounded 17 others, will have to convince a jury he wasn’t negligent in his duties. The decision came Wednesday (August 18) when the judge declined to dismiss 11 charges, which included counts of felony child neglect, Peterson had filed through his attorneys.
“While we are extremely disappointed with the judge’s decision and plan to appeal, we take solace knowing that the truth will come out at trial,” Mark Eiglarsh, one of his lawyers, said following the hearing. “My client is innocent of any criminal wrongdoing and did all he could to save lives during Nikolas Cruz’s abhorrent massacre. The public has been fed a false narrative about Scot Peterson. We have overwhelming evidence proving that the numerous actions that my client took during the attack was done to save lives.”
“I didn’t do anything there to try to hurt any child there on the scene,” Peterson, fighting back tears, recently told a reporter with the Orlando Sun-Sentinel. “I did the best that I could with the information. I did the best ... I’ll never forget that day. You know, not only kids died, I have friends that died. And never for a second would I sit there and allow anyone to die, knowing that animal was up in that building! Never!”
Prosecutors in the case are taking a novel approach and will attempt to prove Peterson, a law enforcement officer assigned to the school, was actually a caregiver and as such, exposed students and teachers to harm by his lack of action, demonstrating reckless disregard for the lives of those he was paid to protect.
Days after the shooting on Valentine’s Day, 2018, a video surfaced showing Peterson’s actions during the shooting.
Senior Brandon Huff claimed he saw Peterson standing outside behind a stairwell wall with his gun drawn “just pointing it at the building. He’s wearing a bulletproof vest … while school security guards, coaches pretty much, were running in shielding kids,” the student added.
An edited version of the video begins with Peterson in his deputy’s uniform standing between two buildings talking to an adult, after which he appears to speak into his radio handset. He then walks off screen and a few minutes later, he is shown from another angle standing outside a building as students walk into and out of the frame.
According to the arrest warrant, when Peterson finally arrived at Building 1200, where the shooting was taking place, he moved 75 feet to a “position of increased personal safety” near Buildings 700 and 800, where he remained for more than 45 minutes, during which time the gunman killed five students and a teacher. While outside the building, Peterson spoke into his radio, saying “I think we have shots fired, possible shots fired, 1200 Building.”
Responding officers scrambled to the scene, but appeared to be following Peterson’s command to close the road in front of the school and set up a perimeter.
Immediately following the massacre, former Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel – who was removed from office by Gov. Rick Scott for his incompetence during the shooting – criticized and publicly shamed Peterson, and President Trump criticized and shamed both Peterson and Israel.
Peterson defended his actions through his lawyers. “Let there be no mistake, Mr. Peterson wishes that he could have prevented the untimely passing of the 17 victims on that day, and his heart goes out to the families of the victims in their time of need,” Joseph DiRuzzo, another of his attorneys, insisted. “However, the allegations that Mr. Peterson was a coward and that his performance, under the circumstances, failed to meet the standards of police officers are patently untrue.”
Sources: WLFI, August 20, 2021; The Orlando Sun-Sentinel; Nicole Chavez, CNN, June 4, 2019; and Kenneth Padowitz, Attorney at Law.
|
|
|
Post by Sam on Aug 21, 2021 0:03:34 GMT -5
This man didn't do his duty as a deputy that day, but from what I've read, he wasn't the only one who was negligent. Still, the person most at fault was the sheriff, who didn't require that his deputies go through training on how to respond in a situation like that.
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Sept 1, 2021 21:24:13 GMT -5
Ted Bundy’s Lawyer Has Advice for Cruz’s Attorneys, Judge Hears Arguments on Prohibiting ‘Prejudicial’ Words at Trial
John Henry Browne, a Colorado attorney obsessed with Ted Bundy, whom he represented briefly, is now offering advice to the lawyers representing Nikolas Cruz. “The main goal for the defense in a case like that is to get the jury to see the defendant as a real person,” Browne said. “I try to present my client as a human being who made a mistake, who did something bad, but not as someone who deserves to die.”
In addition to Bundy, Browne’s client list includes Benjamin Ng, one of three men charged with killing 13 in what is known as the Wah Mee massacre, during which Ng and two other men bound, robbed and shot 14 people at the Wha Mee gambling club located at the Louisa Hotel located in the Chinatown-International District of Seattle. Browne credits the defendant’s mother for saving her son who was facing the death penalty. Ng’s mother appeared before the jury, described his upbringing and as she left the courtroom, turned to the jury, bowed and implored, “Please do not kill my son.”
Defense lawyers in the Parkland shooter case have not revealed a plan to humanize Cruz, if they intend to do so. “We have time to file our intention to use that defense if it’s what we want to pursue,” commented public defender Gordon Weekes. “We’re not there yet and we won’t say anything prematurely.”
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Cruz, whose actions raised warning flags that weren’t recognized by some, or acted upon by others, e.g., the FBI that failed to act when contacted about Cruz.
“Everybody’s going to know about it,” observed Steven Glazer, a Tallahassee attorney who represented Aileen Wuornos. “In a case like Parkland, I’d push for a change of venue. I don’t know of anywhere in the state where the jury won’t know about the case, but the emotional connection can be reduced by holding the trial elsewhere. ... It’s almost impossible to presume innocence in a case that’s generated this much publicity.”
Today (September 1), when Cruz appeared before Judge Elizabeth Scherer, his attorneys argued concerning the language to be used during trial, which would prohibit the use of words such as “massacre,” “execution,” “mass shooter” and “murderer” in the presence of the jury. “We are not making an effort, as the state has alleged, to minimize or purify what happened,” defense attorney Melisa McNeill told the judge. “The evidence speaks for itself, and it’s not necessary to invite error into the record with these prejudicial references.”
Prosecutors disagreed, arguing that the words the defense are attempting to limit are simply facts. “Especially when they adequately describe the defendant and what he did,” prosecutor Nicole Chiappone told the judge. “What else do you call an event where somebody goes into a school and kills 17 innocent people? That is a massacre.”
Linda Schulman Beigel, who lost her son Scott on February 14, 2018, watched the proceedings on Zoom. “He is what he is, and he did what he did,” she remarked. “It was a slaughter to shoot all those people with a weapon of war. He knew what he was doing, he wrote it all out, it was all on his cell phone.”
“The idea that they don’t want him to be called a murderer or say it was an execution is outrageous,” Debbie Hixon, whose husband died trying to stop Cruz, added. “He is a murderer, and it was an execution. Nothing will change that. I am so angry that we have to be concerned about how he feels or how he is portrayed.”
Judge Scherer will announce her ruling at a later date.
Sources: Glen Milberg, WPLG, September 1, 2021; and Rafael Olmeda, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, August 30, 2021.
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Sept 4, 2021 21:41:46 GMT -5
Cruz Can’t Be Called ‘Animal,’ but ‘Murderer,’ ‘School Shooter,’ Etc. Okay
The Honorable Elizabeth Scherer ruled yesterday (September 3) that during trial, prosecutors may not refer to Nikolas Cruz as an animal or “the thing,” but that terms such as “murderer,” “killer” and “school shooter,” i..e, “normal words or terms that may be used to describe particular facts,” are acceptable. Such also applies to words like “massacre,” when referencing the school shooting, which describes a “particular circumstance” and is not, “in and of itself,” a derogatory word. It would not be feasible to create “an exhaustive list of words” that could not be used in reference to Cruz, who faces 34 counts of premeditated and attempted murder, she added.
During a hearing on Wednesday (September 1), Melisa McNeill, a member of the defense team, argued it would be “improper to refer to the accused in derogatory terms,” as well as unnecessary because “the evidence speaks for itself.” Calling the Defendant anything other than his name would be “an attack on his character and is unnecessary,” she declared.
Assistant State Attorney Nicole Chiappone disagreed, citing the fact there is no law preventing the state’s referring to a defendant as a murderer during a murder trial.
In her ruling, Scherer wrote she trusted “that no party wishes to invite error into the proceedings and that the attorneys will act professionally at trial, as is their duty,” adding that witnesses also would be expected to exhibit “proper courtroom decorum” and act appropriately.
“Defendant shall be tried on the evidence and what the attorneys say is not evidence,” the judge continued. “A trial is not the time for the attorneys to editorialize or give their opinions of a defendant. The trial attorneys shall present the evidence, and the jury shall make their determinations based on the evidence presented.”
A trial date has not been set.
Sources: Terry Spencer, Associated Press, September 3, 2021; WFLI, September 4, 2021; and WJXT, September 4, 2021.
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Sept 8, 2021 17:10:51 GMT -5
Judge Denies Some Motions, Will Rule Later on Mitigation
Prosecutors and defense attorneys in the Parkland shooter case confronted each other in a hearing today (September 8) before the Honorable Elizabeth Scherer.
Melisa McNeill, a member of the defense team, declared she had no intention of attempting to justify the actions of her client, Nikolas Cruz, who is charged with killing 17 students and faculty members and wounding 17 others. However, she argued, defense lawyers should be allowed to present mitigating factors such as the failures of therapists, school officials and campus security guards during the penalty phase. “The whole concept on individualized sentences is what makes the death penalty constitutional in this country,” she told the judge. “There’s no more certain way to guarantee Mr. Cruz another trial than to exclude mitigation that is relevant to his character, his prior acts, or the circumstances of the events. ... We have this concept of mitigation because it prevents the risk of the death penalty being imposed on individuals who would be qualifying for less serious or severe penalty.”
Prosecutor Jeff Marcus opposed McNeill’s contentions, arguing that the enormity of Cruz’s acts aren’t lessened by the school’s violating its security procedures by unlocking the gates before dismissal and leaving them unguarded, which allowed Cruz to sneak in. The failure of some students who were shot to follow mass shooting protocols should not be allowed either, he added. “This is arguably third-party negligence directly related to the defendant, but doesn’t reduce his moral culpability.”
Judge Scherer indicated she would rule soon on the mitigation argument.
She outright denied three other motions before her: (1) that separate juries handle the guilt phase and, if needed, the sentencing phase; (2) that Cruz’s attorneys be allowed to eliminate in excess of 10 prospective jurors without cause during jury selection; and (3) that defense attorneys be allowed to view testimony and evidence presented to the grand jury that indicted Nikolas Cruz in March 2018.
A trial date has not been set at this time.
Sources: State of Florida v. Nikolas Jacob Cruz, Case No. 18-001958-CF-10A; Checkol, WPLG, September 8, 2021; and Terry Spencer, Associated Press, September 8, 2021.
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Sept 17, 2021 13:21:09 GMT -5
Jurors Will View Site of Parkland Shooting
Despite an 87-page objection filed by the defense, Judge Elizabeth Scherer has decided jurors in the Parkland shooting case will be allowed to view the location where Nikolas Cruz shot and killed 17 individuals and wounded 17 others.
The state argued that jurors have the right to the facts, including touring the crime scene, which would provide clarity, in terms of witness testimony, that could not be replicated in the courtroom by crime scene photos, postmortem pictures of the victims, etc.
Defense attorneys countered by claiming such would overwhelm jurors with “vicarious trauma,” making a fair trial and verdict impossible.
Sources: Kate McLaughlin, Court TV, September 16, 2021; and State of Florida v. Nikolas Jacob Cruz, Case No. 18-001958-CF-10A.
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Oct 8, 2021 18:56:18 GMT -5
Jury Selection in Assault Trial, Prosecution Objects to Defendant’s Colored PencilsDuring jury selection in the trial concerning the jailhouse brawl between Nikolas Cruz and Sgt. Raymond Beltran, prosecutor Maria Schneider objected to the Defendant’s being provided colored pencils for the purpose of drawing during the proceedings. “They are doing [that] so the jury perceives that he is a child, that his mentality is somehow challenged,” she told the Honorable Elizabeth Scherer.
Gabe Ermine, lead defense lawyer, assured Schneider and the court this wasn’t the case, that the defense was simply attempting to soothe his emotions. “I am trying to keep him calm,” Ermine insisted. “We are not doing this for any nefarious reasons.”
The judge wasn’t convinced and ruled that for safety reasons, the Defendant would have to make do with the pen provided by his guards.
The 288 potential jurors were brought into the courtroom 32 at the time and questioned by attorneys, however, very few said they had never heard of Nikolas Cruz and only 106 indicated they could be fair. Additionally, after one look at the timid-looking young man with uncombed hair and thick-framed glasses who murdered 17 individuals and wounded 17 others in the 2018 Valentine’s Day shooting, several of the men and women could not hold back their tears.
The altercation between Beltran and Cruz took place November 13, 2018, and although a security camera recorded the fight, there is no sound. Beltran was supervising Cruz during a recreation period when Cruz flipped him the bird with both hands and charged him. Beltran was able to end the fight by administering a blow to the inmate’s head. Beltran claimed Cruz attacked him after he asked him to stop dragging his feet and damaging his sandals. Defense attorneys are expected to argue that Beltran had a history of mistreating Cruz and verbally instigated the fight.
Of interest, in March 2020, Beltran was arrested for drunk driving while transporting a prisoner in Washington state, where he was on official business. A breathalyzer test revealed a blood-alcohol level of .15, almost twice the legal intoxication level.
If convicted of attempted criminal battery on a law enforcement officer and three lesser charges, Cruz faces a possible 15-year sentence. In the Parkland shooting case – which has not been set for trial – he is facing either life in prison or death and if convicted of assaulting Beltran, the state can argue such as a mitigating factor during the penalty phase of the murder trial. Sources: Rafael Olmeda, The South Florida Sun Sentinel, October 8, 2021; Terry Spencer, The Associated Press, October 3, 2021; Sabrina Lolo, WTVX, January 13, 2020.
|
|
|
Post by pat on Oct 9, 2021 0:17:51 GMT -5
I know some people who know Beltran and they say he can be a real AH and that he probably did provoke Cruz.
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Oct 14, 2021 22:43:21 GMT -5
Cruz to Plead Guilty to Murders and Assault, Shooting Could Have Been Prevented
Tomorrow morning (October 15), Nikolas Cruz is expected to plead guilty to 17 counts of murder, 17 counts of attempted murder, criminal battery upon a law enforcement officer and three lesser charges.
His guilty pleas to murder and attempted murder mean that during the school shooting trial, the jury will not be charged with finding the Defendant guilty or not guilty, but only whether he should receive life in prison or death by lethal injection.
Shooting Could Have Been Prevented. Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, Chairman of the Majory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission, commented in the past that Cruz’s behavior was “troubling ... and in many cases it probably should have caused” those aware of such behavior “to report what they heard, saw or learned. But for a variety of reasons they did not.” This, of course, isn’t true, at least two individuals reported their fears to the FBI.
According some who knew Cruz, prior to Valentine’s Day, 2018, when he opened fire on students and staff members at his former high school, he was known to have wantonly killed various animals and on one occasion, showed a fellow student a photograph of a decapitated cat.
Additionally, he was known to have hated various ethnic groups, as well as homosexuals. Following the Pulse nightclub shooting, he allegedly said he was happy the shooter “killed all those gay people.” He also hated Jews and said he wished “all Jews were dead,” even though he was aware his birth mother was Jewish.
While expressing dislike, or even hate, for various ethnic groups, homosexuals and others who are somehow “different” in some respect is, and always has been, common, few harbor thoughts of becoming a school shooter, or otherwise harming anyone, and the few who do have sense enough not to post such online. Not only did Cruz admit his murderous desires online, he used his own name, and although such was reported to the FBI, not once, but twice, no action was taken.
The first report came on September 25, 2017, when a Mississippi bail bondsman submitted a report advising that someone on YouTube with the user name “nikolas cruz” said “I am going to be a professional school shooter.” The information was flagged and the tipster interviewed, but it was ultimately decided the true identity of the person who posted the comment could not be determined. Apparently, it never occurred to anyone in the top law enforcement agency in the United States that the individual may have been using his actual name!
A little more than three months later, on January 5, 2018, another individual contacted the FBI and spent 13 minutes providing detailed information about an individual named “Nikolas Cruz,” who posted on Instagram that he intended to harm himself and others. And she didn’t stop there, she provided Cruz’s address, phone number and the names of the couple with whom he was living: James and Kimberly Snead. She also revealed Cruz had purchased multiple guns, mutilated small animals, had the mental capacity of a 12- to 14-year-old and was going to explode. “I just want someone to know about this so they can look into it. …,” she continued. “I just know I have a clear conscience if he takes off and, and just starts shooting places up.”
Now the FBI had a second report and this time, the caller left no doubts as to the actual identity of the potential shooter and still, no action was taken. Apparently, no one in the elite, highly efficient FBI had considered inputting names, including user names, into a computer so they could be checked when a new report came in.
Later, the agency admitted that “under established protocols, the information provided by the caller should have been assessed as a potential threat to life,” but by that time, 17 people were dead, 17 others were wounded and Nikolas Cruz was facing the death penalty.
Sources: WTLV, October 14, 2021; and Paul Best, Fox News, October 14, 2021; Paula McMahon and Brittany Wallman, The South Florida Sun-Sentinel, August 29, 2018; State of Florida v. Nikolas Jacob Cruz, Case No. 18-001958-CF-10A; and the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission.
|
|
|
Post by Graveyardbride on Oct 21, 2021 12:59:07 GMT -5
Cruz Pleads Guilty, Apologizes and Gets 25 Years for Attacking GuardYesterday (October 20), Nikolas Cruz, wearing a shirt with sleeves that were much too long, stood before the Honorable Elizabeth Scherer, told her he was experiencing anxiety, but knew what was happening, and answered her questions respectfully. He then responded “guilty” as each of the 34 charges in the school shooting case was read.
He proceeded to apologize to the victims, saying, “I am very sorry for what I did and I have to live with it every day. If I were to get a second chance, I would do everything in my power to try to help others. I am doing this for you and I do not care if you do not believe me. And I love you and I know you don’t believe me, but I have to live with this every day, and it brings me nightmares and I can’t live with myself sometimes, but I try to push through because I know that’s what you guys would want me to do.
“I hate drugs, and I believe this country would do better if everyone would stop smoking marijuana and doing all these drugs and causing racism and violence out in the streets,” he continued. “I’m sorry and I can’t even watch TV anymore. And I’m trying my best to maintain my composure, and I just want you to know I’m really sorry, and I hope you give me a chance to try to help others. I believe it’s your decision to decide where I go, and whether I live or die. Not the jury’s. I believe it’s your decision. I’m sorry.”
When the judge reminded him a jury, not the victims’ families would decide his sentence, he explained, “What I meant was I believe they should have the right to choose, the victims themselves, on whether I should take life or death.”
Jury selection is scheduled to begin in the penalty phase of the shooting trial on Tuesday, January 4, 2022.
Cruz also pled guilty to attempted aggravated battery on Raymond Beltran, the guard he attacked in November 2018. During the altercation, Cruz tackled and repeatedly punched the officer and grabbed his stun gun. The confrontation allegedly arose because Beltran instructed the inmate not to drag his sandals while walking about in the day room area.
Judge Scherer sentenced the Defendant to 25 years in prison and 364 days in the county jail for the assault, less the 1,345 days he has already served.
Tony Montalto, father of Gina Montalto, one of the students killed, scoffed at Cruz’s apology. “If he wanted to apologize, he shouldn't have murdered Gina and 16 other people that day. We need to deprive these mass murderers of the notoriety they seek. . . . We need to remember the victims for the wonderful and vibrant people that they were. I think he deserves as much of a chance as he gave my daughter and everyone else on February 14 of 2018.”
Recently, a $25 million settlement was reached between 52 victims of the Parkland shooting and the Broward County School Board. According to David Brill, the lawyer representing five of the plaintiffs, the lawsuit includes the families of the 17 killed, 16 of 17 of the victims who were shot but survived and 19 others who claim to be suffering from PTSD. Sources: WTLV, October 20, 2021; Eric Levenson, Leyla Santiago and Gregory Lemos, CNN, October 20, 2021; and WJCT, October 19, 2021.
|
|
|
Post by jason on Oct 21, 2021 17:23:28 GMT -5
That little dick deserves the death penalty for the school shooting, but he doesn't deserve 25 years for fighting with a freaking guard.
|
|
|
Post by pat on Oct 21, 2021 18:32:48 GMT -5
That little dick deserves the death penalty for the school shooting, but he doesn't deserve 25 years for fighting with a freaking guard. I've heard people who know Raymond Beltran say he can be a real ass at times and that he probably provoked Cruz.
|
|
|
Post by jason on Oct 22, 2021 10:53:56 GMT -5
The shirt doesn't fit, but those look like button-back cuffs, so the problem is either that the little dick doesn't know how to wear it or deliberately left them unbuttoned to appear childlike -- and it's probably the latter. But when it comes to dressing inappropriately, look at that godawful tie his attorney is wearing with matching pocket square! And the female lawyer needs a new hairstyle, or rather "a" hairstyle. Of course, they are public defenders.
|
|