Nikolas Cruz sentencing - live: Parkland shooter asked if people ‘ate’ corpses and told class ‘I like guns’
The sentencing trial of Nikolas Cruz, convicted of the 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, is continuing in Florida court, with the defence presenting its case for a second week.
Cruz’s brother Zachary Cruz is expected to take the stand in the upcoming days after their sister Danielle Woodard was brought from jail to testify for his defence. Woodard said her brother was “polluted” in the womb by their biological mother who was an alcoholic and drug addict. Jurors also heard from teachers, neighbours and psychiatrists who treated Cruz as a child.
The defence case comes after prosecutors spent three weeks detailing how Cruz murdered 17 students and staff members on Valentine’s Day 2018. Jurors heard from grieving family members and toured the school site.
On Friday, a grand jury released its report into the massacre, finding that four Broward County School board officials had neglected their duties on school safety. Governor Ron DeSantis immediately ousted the elected officials.
In October 2021, Cruz pleaded guilty to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder. Jurors will now decide if he is sentenced to death or to life in prison.
Key points
Witness says Cruz watched his father die
Cruz was aggressive from young age, court hears
School letter states Cruz has dreams of killing others and being ‘covered in blood'
Nikolas Cruz wrote ‘666’ in his own blood on prison cell walls
Defence says Cruz’s ‘brain is broken’ from mother’s drinking
Ron DeSantis ousts school board members over Parkland report
Prosecution tries to show that Cruz was able to control his behaviour
19:55 , Rachel Sharp
The prosecution tried to argue that Cruz was able to control his behaviour and acted out “intentionally” in school so that he would be moved to another school.
The court was shown parts of a functional behavioural assessment on Cruz while he was at West Glades School from 2011 to 2013.
The notes detail several incidents of bad behaviour by Cruz at the school.
In one incident, he “screamed and threw his books when the fire alarm went off” and then “laughed about it”.
Another time, dated 17 October 2013, Cruz’s class was discussing a book and Cruz deliberately read aloud the last couple of pages to ruin the ending.
When told to stop he told the school staff member that he disliked the book but announced that he liked guns.
“He stated, ‘I like guns’ can we talk about that,” the note read.
Multiple occasions are logged of Cruz using obscenities and obscene language.
According to another student, Cruz asked them one time: “How am I still at the school?”
The prosecutor showed the court some notes showing that Cruz behaved in front of the male assistant principal and then acted out when he left the room.
Jessica Clark Flournoy, who was Cruz’s counsellor at the school when he was there from 2011 to 2013 but did not author the notes, testified that Cruz behaved in her counselling sessions and never spoke of his fascination with guns to her.
She was asked whether his differences in actions showed he was able to control himself and his behaviour.
She agreed, saying “he had the ability to make choices”.
He was moved from West Glades – a general education school – to Cross Creek – a school that focuses on student’s special education needs.
Cruz asked if people ‘ate’ bodies of dead in US Civil War and found ‘any excuse to bring up guns’, court hears
19:19 , Rachel Sharp
Nikolas Cruz asked if people “ate” the bodies of those killed in the US Civil War and found “any excuse to bring up guns”, the court heard.
Under cross-examination, school counsellor Jessica Clark Flournoy was asked about the notes about Cruz made by a behaviour specialist at West Glades School. Ms Flournoy was Cruz’s counsellor at the time.
The prosecutor pointed out that Ms Flournoy met with Cruz once a week as a counsellor but was not present in the classroom when he displayed bad behaviour.
Jurors were shown a functional behavioural assessment completed by a behavioural specialist at the school.
In it, the expert detailed how Cruz drew pictures of shooting victims and asked what it sounded like when Abraham Lincoln was shot dead.
In one of notes from 4 September 2013, the expert writes: “Nikolas drew questionable depiction on his vocabulary worksheet. Nick was asked to erase them and fix his work. Nick drew naked stick figures (showing body parts) and drew pictures of people shooting each other with guns.”
Another note from 11 September 2013 details that Cruz “became fixated on death and assassination of Abraham Lincoln” and asked a lot of questions about the shooting.
“Nikolas returned from being out of Internal Suspension. After discussing and lecturing about the Civil War in America, Nikolas became fixated on death and assassination of Abraham Lincoln,” it reads.
“Some questions he asked were “What did it sound like when Lincoln was shot? Did it go pop, pop, pop really fast? Was there blood everywhere? After the war, what did they do with all of the bodies? Did people eat them?”
On another day, the expert writes that “Nikolas will find any excuse to bring up guns”.
Court resumes with cross-examination of school counsellor
18:38 , Rachel Sharp
The court has resumed after the lunchtime recess with the prosecution now cross-examining Jessica Clark Flournoy, an admissions counsellor and former ESE (Exceptional Student Education) counsellor for students with special needs.
Ms Flournoy worked as a counsellor to Cruz from 2011 to December 2013, when he was a student at West Glades Middle School in Parkland.
Court is on lunchtime recess
17:20 , Rachel Sharp
The court is now on recess until 1.15pm ET.
The prosecution said that it is planning a “lengthy” cross of Jessica Clark Flournoy, an admissions counsellor and former ESE (Exceptional Student Education) counsellor for students with special needs.
School counsellor says Cruz’s behaviour ‘progressively got worse over time'
17:10 , Rachel Sharp
Jessica Clark Flournoy, who worked as a counsellor to Cruz from 2011 to December 2013, testified that his behaviour worsened over time.
“Over time his behaviour worsened,” she said. “He progressively got worse over time.”
Ms Flournoy gave examples of his behaviour such as “uncontrollably laughing in class” and “blurting out inappropriate things in class”.
During one incident, he ripped apart the faucet of a sink in the boys’ bathroom in the school, according to notes from one of her meetings with him at the time. After that incident, he was sent on the PROMISE program for children struggling with learning disabilities.
In another note, from September 2012, she had written that Cruz confided he was “uncontrollably laughing in three of his classes” and that “he explained that he can’t control himself when he begins to laugh”.
Cruz also told her in another session that he didn’t misbehave in one class because his teacher was strict and had a more “structured class”.
At one point, Cruz’s behaviour worsened to an extent that he had to be escorted by someone when he went to lunch or moved from class to class.
“Initially he was trying really hard to do well and over time he started to have issues managing his behaviours,” she told the court.
In one note, she wrote that he hoped his behaviour would lead him to be sent to another school. She said that it became clear that the school was not suitable for Cruz as it did not have the resources necessary to meet his needs.
School counsellor testifies Cruz ‘was sad’ about not having friends
16:47 , Rachel Sharp
Jessica Clark Flournoy, an admissions counsellor and former ESE (Exceptional Student Education) counsellor for students with special needs, took the stand on Tuesday after a short morning break.
Ms Flournoy, who was subpoenaed to testify by the defence, worked as a family counsellor for Cruz when he was a student at West Glades Middle School in Parkland from 2011 to December 2013.
Her role was to work on students’ social and emotional goals, she said.
Initially, she said she met with Cruz in group sessions but then switched to individual sessions after a few months.
She said that Cruz “academically struggled” but, at first, tried to “do well” at school.
He “really wanted to do well” and was “very concerned” about his grades, she said.
However, she said that he struggled to concentrate and keep up with the work and didn’t have a lot of self-confidence in his abilities.
He was “very anxious” about the possibility that his younger brother Zachary would catch up to him academically told her that he would “make him feel bad” about his academic struggles, she said.
Socially, Ms Flournoy said Cruz struggled to make friends.
“He wanted to have friends and be liked by his peers... he struggled making friends,” she said.
“He was sad about that. He really wanted to be accepted by his peers and be liked.”
Notes from one of her meetings shown to the court reveal that “he was pleased with himself [that day] because he started to get noticed by his peers at school”.
When asked about her impressions of his adoptive mother Lynda, Ms Flournoy described her as a “wonderful mother [who] wanted the best for her son... she was very involved”.
Witness reveals more details about Cruz ‘inappropriately touching’ girl
16:14 , Rachel Sharp
Under cross-examination, Finai Browd revealed further details about an incident where Cruz was accused of “inappropriately touching” a young girl years before the Parkland massacre.
Ms Browd, who was best friends with Cruz’s late adoptive mother Lynda Cruz, said in Monday’s testimony that her family and the Cruz family were close and would spend a lot of time together when he was growing.
But, at one point, she said there was “an incident with Nikolas... inappropriate touching” of a young girl.
When questioned further about the incident by prosecutors in testimony played on Tuesday, Ms Browd said that Cruz had “tried to put his hand in [the girl’s] shirt and “tried to watch her shower”. The girl was around six or seven years old at the time.
Cruz’s adoptive mother Lynda instantly put a stop to it, Ms Browd said.
“Lynda had nipped it in the bud right away,” she said.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story:
Court hears girl accused Nikolas Cruz of inappropriate touching years before Parkland
Cruz would ‘manipulate’ his mother, her friend testifies
16:05 , Rachel Sharp
Under cross-examination from the prosecution, Finai Browd said that Nikolas Cruz would “manipulate” his adoptive mother Lynda Cruz.
Ms Browd, who was best friends with Lynda for years, testified that he would become “more aggressive” and “intimidate” people including his mother.
“Nikolas Cruz would manipulate Lynda Cruz?” the prosecutor asked.
“Absolutely,” she replied.
When asked how, she said: “I think he was probably just more aggressive and intimidate people.”
Ms Browd said that Cruz’s adoptive father Roger would not tolerate his bad behaviour.
When Roger died in 2004 just before Cruz turned six, she said he didn’t change initially.
“He stayed the same, he was a little boy, he was five years old,” she said.
“He wasn’t aggressive like you’re thinking he was... he didn’t hit people... he just did animal noises.”
When he became a bit older, Cruz became more aggressive, she said.
”Roger wouldn’t tolerate that behaviour,” she testified.
Video deposition from friend of Cruz’s adoptive mother continues
14:55 , Rachel Sharp
Tuesday’s session has begun with the defence continuing with its video deposition of Finai Browd, the best friend of Nikolas Cruz’s late adoptive mother Lynda Cruz.
Ms Browd said she and Lynda became best friends when they both lived in New York in the 1980s. The friends then both moved to Florida with their husbands and deliberately chose to live near each other.
The families were close and she witnessed much of Cruz’s growing up, with her adopted children often hanging out with Cruz and his brother Zachary.
On Monday, Ms Browd testified that Cruz was “aggressive” from a young age and had “tantrums” unlike those of a typical child.
He was also “so attached” to his mother that she couldn’t go anywhere without him when he was young, she said.
She also revealed that Cruz saw his father die when he was just five years old and “inappropriately touched” a young girl.
Jurors are seated as defence continues case
14:40 , Rachel Sharp
Jurors have been seated in the courtroom as the day’s proceedings get under way.
The defence is continuing its case for a second week this week.
RECAP: What happened in court on Monday?
14:25 , Rachel Sharp
On Monday, jurors heard from the best friend of the gunman’s late adoptive mother Finai Browd, who revealed that Cruz saw his father die when he was just five years old and “inappropriately touched” a young girl.
Borden Rodriguez, a retired Broward County schoolteacher who taught Cruz in third and fourth grade, also testified that he was moved into her class with emotional, behavioural and language difficulties.
As a child, she said he was “quiet, aloof, didn’t blend in well with other students”, was often “anxious” and could be “aggressive and violent”.
The court also heard from Dr Shameka Stanford, an expert in speech and language who was brought onto Cruz’s case in 2019.
After reviewing his education and medical history, she said that Cruz had a speech and lanuage capability around two years below his age but – despite his diagnosis – was not given the treatment required.
Court hears about moment Cruz watched father die: ‘Daddy’s dead’
13:50 , Rachel Sharp
Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz watched his adoptive father die when he was just five years old, running and telling his mother “daddy’s dead”, jurors heard on Monday.
Finai Browd, who was friends with Cruz’s late adoptive mother Lynda Cruz, described the shocking moment that Cruz witnessed his father Roger’s sudden death from a heart attack in 2004.
She told the court that Lynda had told her Roger was in the family’s den with Nikolas and his younger brother Zachary while she was in the kitchen making lunch.
Suddenly, Nikolas – who was almost six at the time – ran past her crying.
When she asked her son if he was upset because his father had yelled at him, Cruz allegedly gave a harrowing response.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story:
Mother’s friend describes moment Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz watched father die
Nikolas Cruz accused of inappropriate touching years before Parkland
13:19 , Rachel Sharp
Nikolas Cruz was accused of “inappropriately touching” a young girl years before he murdered 17 in the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, according to shocking courtroom testimony.
Finai Browd, who was best friends with Cruz’s late adoptive mother Lynda Cruz, mentioned the disturbing detail in a pre-recorded video deposition played in Florida court on Monday.
Ms Browd recalled how she and Lynda became best friends when they both lived in New York in the 1980s. The friends then both moved to Florida with their husbands and deliberately lived near each other.
Around the same time that Lynda and her husband Roger adopted Nikolas and then his biological half-brother Zachary, Ms Browd said she and her husband also adopted two children.
Both of their families were very close and their children would spend a lot of time together, she said.
But, at one point, she said there was “an incident with Nikolas... inappropriate touching with” a young girl.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story:
Court hears girl accused Nikolas Cruz of inappropriate touching years before Parkland
ICYMI: Biden interrupted by Parkland father at White House event celebrating bipartisan gun legislation
10:58 , Josh Marcus
Joe Biden was interrupted by Parkland father Manuel Oliver during a White House event celebrating the passage of a bipartisan gun safety bill earlier this year, a telling moment in the recent conversation around stopping gun violence.
Mr Oliver, who lost his son Joaquin during the 2018 Florida shooting at Marjory Stone Douglas High School, stood up during the president’s speech on the White House lawn.
“Despite the naysayers, we can make meaningful progress on dealing with gun violence,” Mr Biden said during his speech.
Gustaf Kilander had this report on the incident.
Biden interrupted by Parkland father at event celebrating bipartisan gun legislation
The organization of Parkland survivors leading the way on gun control activism
09:58 , Josh Marcus
Angered by the unrelenting toll from gun violence, tens of thousands of people have rallied in Washington and around the United States demanding that Congress pass meaningful changes to gun laws.
The second March For Our Lives took place in front of the Washington Monument, a successor to the 2018 march organized by student protestors after the mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Florida.
Now with recent shootings from Uvalde, Texas, to Buffalo, New York, bringing gun control back into the national conversation, organizers say the time is right to renew their push for a national overhaul.
March for Our Lives returns with a renewed gun control push
What the US can learn from other countries that have eliminated gun violence
08:58 , Josh Marcus
No country is a perfect analog of the US, but several have taken steps that worked for them — here are their insights, courtesy of this story from Chris Weller.
These 4 countries have nearly eliminated gun deaths — here's what the US can learn
Republican pulls out firearms to oppose gun control during House hearing
07:58 , Josh Marcus
What does the gun control conversation look like in Florida?
Republican Florida Representative Greg Steube pulled out several guns as he took part in a debate on gun violence via Zoom in June.
The House Judiciary Committee was discussing a package of gun control measures following a series of mass shootings across the US.
The Florida lawmaker was taking part via videocall when he showed off his firearms while arguing against specific measures in the package that would institute limits on magazines.
More from Gustaf Kilander.
Republican pulls out firearms to oppose gun control during House hearing
Victims of the worst crimes remain divided on death penalty
06:58 , Josh Marcus
Nikolas Cruz could face the death penalty for his role in the Parkland shooting.
However, as The Independent has reported, people whose loved ones have perished in some of the worst violence in recent US history, from terrorist attacks to hate crimes, remain divided over whether it’s an appropriate punishment for the worst offenses.
More from our in-depth report.
Victims’ families split on proper fate for their relatives’ killers
Parkland trial reveals allegation of sexual misconduct against Nikolas Cruz
05:58 , Josh Marcus
Nikolas Cruz was accused of “inappropriately touching” a young girl years before he murdered 17 in the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, according to shocking courtroom testimony.
Finai Browd, who was best friends with Cruz’s late adoptive mother Lynda Cruz, mentioned the disturbing detail in a pre-recorded video deposition played in Florida court on Monday.
Ms Browd recalled how she and Lynda became best friends when they both lived in New York in the 1980s. The friends then both moved to Florida with their husbands and deliberately lived near each other.
Rachel Sharp has the story.
Court hears girl accused Nikolas Cruz of inappropriate touching years before Parkland
ICMYI: Chilling jailhouse drawings show Nikolas Cruz saying he wants to ‘go to death row’ and be ‘buried with a woman’
04:58 , Josh Marcus
Chilling jailhouse drawings and notes have revealed Nikolas Cruz saying he wants to “go to death row” and then be “buried with a woman who had a s***ty life like me”.
Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) released a trove of disturbing sketches and ramblings which were scrawled by the mass murderer while he is being held behind bars in Broward County Jail.
In the 30 pages of incoherent ramblings, the 23-year-old has drawn disturbing images of the devil and pictures appearing to depict the Valentine’s Day 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Rachel Sharp has the full story.
Nikolas Cruz’s chilling jailhouse drawings released
Nikolas Cruz’s violence didn’t end with Parkland shooting, jail guard claims
03:58 , Josh Marcus
A jail guard testified in July that Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz attacked him with little warning nine months after Cruz murdered 17 students and staff at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School four years ago and tried to wrest away his electric stun gun.
As jurors in Cruz’s death penalty trial watched a surveillance video of the Nov. 13, 2018, brawl, Broward County sheriff’s Sgt. Raymond Beltran gave a play-by-play description. He said it began after he told Cruz to walk properly as he supervised Cruz’s recreation period.
Cruz was being jailed in isolation for the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre. The video shows Cruz in an orange jail uniform and a pair of shower slippers, walking laps around some tables as Beltran sat behind a desk a few feet away.
More info below.
Jail guard describes how Florida school shooter attacked him
The complicated use of graphic videos and photos in Parkland trial makes it unique
02:58 , Josh Marcus
Few Americans outside law enforcement and government ever see the most graphic videos or photos from the nation’s worst mass shootings — in most states, such evidence is only displayed at trial and most such killers die during or immediately after their attacks. They never make it to court.
That has made the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz for his 2018 murder of 17 people at Parkland‘s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School unusual.
As the worst U.S. mass shooting to reach trial, the surveillance videos taken during his attack and the crime scene and autopsy photos that show its horrific aftermath are being seen by jurors on shielded video screens and, after each day’s court session, shown to a small group of journalists. But they are not shown in the gallery, where parents and spouses sit, or to the general public watching on TV.
Get the full story.
Parkland trial a rare, curtailed look at mass shooting gore
Is fetal alcohol syndrome to blame for the Parkland shooting?
01:58 , Josh Marcus
During the defence’s opening statement in the Nikolas Cruz sentencing, his public defender Melisa McNeill said that Cruz suffers from fetal alcohol spectrum disorders caused by his biological mother Brenda Woodard abusing alcohol and drugs during pregnancy.
Learn more about this set of health conditions, and its role in the Cruz case.
Nikolas Cruz: What are fetal alcohol spectrum disorders?
How Nikolas Cruz’s mother factors into Parkland case
01:38 , Josh Marcus
The Parkland case is focusing on more than just Nikolas Cruz, the gunman convicted of killing 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on Valentine’s Day 2018.
At the centre of the defence’s case is the argument that Cruz is mentally ill and that his troubled origins are to blame for his actions – which saw him lay siege to his former school with a legally-purchased AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle in one of the deadliest mass shootings in American history.
During opening statements and testimony from the first defence witnesses called to the stand, much of the blame for his troubled start in life was placed squarely on the shoulders of his biological mother Brenda Woodard.
Joe Sommerlad and Rachel Sharp have more.
Who was the Parkland shooter’s mother Brenda Woodard?
What lessons have been learned since the Parkland massacre?
01:18 , Josh Marcus
Almost 70 documented incidents of violence by age 19. Boasts online of being “the next school shooter”. Tips about threatening behaviour ignored by the FBI. Unlocked and unmanned gates at the school. Students and staff left to wander hallways while no active shooter alert was made. A school resource officer who hid from the gunfire for more than 45 minutes.
Nearly everything that could have gone wrong that day did.
Rachel Sharp has this look at what we’ve learned since Parkland.
Missed warning signs, failings and lessons learned: Nikolas Cruz and Parkland
Will more school police stop the next Parkland? Not likely
Tuesday 30 August 2022 00:48 , Josh Marcus
School police officers are often one of the only politically acceptable, publicly popular solutions to school shootings that receive new investments.
However, even as the use of so-called “school resource officers” (SROs) has exploded in recent years, data shows the added boots on the ground have done little to stop more mass shootings on campus.
Instead, by connecting schools directly to agents of the criminal justice system, school officials seem to have inadvertently imported all the racial biases of mass incarceration along with them.
Read more from our in-depth report.
Police didn’t stop shootings in Parkland or Uvalde. Biden is giving them $300m anyway
Watch: Video shows violent drawings Nikolas Cruz made in jail
Tuesday 30 August 2022 00:28 , Josh Marcus
Monday’s proceedings involved the display of shocking images of drawings Nikolas Cruz made in prison.
Nikolas Cruz’s chilling jailhouse drawings released
The court heard how the Parkland shooter drew pictures of guns, wrote instructions on how to build bombs, and even drew “666” on his cell walls in his own blood.
He drew on the walls with his own blood...
Chilling drawings and writings have been found inside the #Parkland shooter's cell.
WATCH #CourtTV LIVE - https://t.co/tnYdPcDRMU pic.twitter.com/dOpicQx5wb— Court TV (@CourtTV) August 29, 2022
Survivors of Parkland, Uvalde shootings rally for gun control in Texas
Tuesday 30 August 2022 00:08 , Josh Marcus
Families and survivors tied to shootings in Uvalde and Parkland rallied in Texas over the weekend, demanding that governor Greg Abbott hold a special session to raise the legal age required to buy an AR-15 rifle in the state.
Santa Fe, Uvalde, Parkland and El Paso survivors with holes in their broken hearts demanded Abbott hold a special session to raise the age to 21 to buy an AK-15. Their pain and anger was raw. @MomsDemand
@StudentsDemandAction #UvaldeStrong @march4ourlives
Text “Act” to 64433 pic.twitter.com/WACwPWfPsC— Susan Pintchovski (@pintchovski) August 27, 2022
Uvalde gunman Salvador Ramos was able to buy his assault weapon once he turned 18. Nikolas Cruz also purchased the assault weapon he used legally.
“You do not give a damn, you care more about our guns than you do our children,” Brett Cross, uncle of Uvalde victim Uziyah Garcia, said at the event. “You couldn’t even tell us their damn names. I asked you, you said you couldn’t say [them] off the top of your head. We remember them, and we are going to make damn well sure that you do to.”
The Texas governor, however, remains a staunch supporter of gun rights, and has said that mental health problems are to blame for Uvalde, not access to guns.
Monday 29 August 2022 23:48 , Josh Marcus
Finai Browd, a family friend of Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz, testified in court on Monday. She described how Cruz began having “extensive” tantrums around the age of four, evincing a “his way or no way” attitude she said far surpassed that of a normal child.
“He would have tantrums if he didn’t get his way, but kids have tantrums, but not to that extent. It would be like a full-blown tantrum, kind of out of control,” she said.
“He would throw things. He would kick the floor, whatever, lay down and scream and cry, but not like the normal tantrum the child has,” she added.
Watch her full remarks below.
"It had to be his way or no way": A friend of the Parkland shooter's adoptive mother described the
full-blown tantrums he had when he was four years old. pic.twitter.com/lvZmLloXgk— Law&Crime Network (@LawCrimeNetwork) August 29, 2022
Where do Florida’s candidates for governor stand on gun control?
Monday 29 August 2022 23:28 , Josh Marcus
Gun control remains a hotly contested issue in Florida, four years after the Parkland shooting.
It has emerged as one of the issues in this year’s gubernatorial race between Republican incumbent Ron DeSantis and Democratic challenger Charlie Crist.
Mr Crist, a current member of Congress and former governor of Florida, recently called Mr DeSantis’s support of an open carry proposal in Florida “insane.”
“Florida’s been really stunned, horribly, by the gun issue,” Mr Crist said last week, referencing the Parkland massacre and the Pulse nightclub shooting.
The current governor, Mr DeSantis, wants the state legislature to send him a bill allowing open carry of weapons without a permit or license.
Watch Mr Crist’s full comments below.
"Florida's been really stunned, horribly, by the gun issue," says Dem. gubernatorial nominee in Florida, Charlie Crist, citing the Parkland and Pulse shootings. "[DeSantis] wants to have open carry in our state. Is he out of his mind? That's insane." pic.twitter.com/fQDCxihkkO
— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 25, 2022
Parkland parent calls for assault weapons ban
Monday 29 August 2022 23:08 , Josh Marcus
Fred Guttenberg’s daughter Jaime was among the 17 people killed in the Parkland shooting.
The tragedy inspired the father to join with Democrats in calling for a renewed assault weapons ban.
“This is my daughter Jaime, murdered with an assault weapon at her school in Parkland,” Mr Guttenberg wrote on Twitter on Monday, alongside a photo of Jaime with the family dog.
“For all of those who have been killed in America because of assault weapons, thank you President Joe Biden,” he added.
And we are ready to join you @POTUS to get this done. This is my daughter Jaime, murdered with an assault weapon at her school in Parkland, Fl. For all of those who have been killed in America because of assault weapons, thank you President @JoeBiden. https://t.co/yQjg2ojyDG pic.twitter.com/7RR1KYzhSU
— Fred Guttenberg (@fred_guttenberg) August 29, 2022
The president has said banning assault weapons is a major priority if the Democrats remain in control of Congress after the midterms.
Joe Biden pledges to ban assault weapons if Democrats control Congress after midterms
Court breaks for day
Monday 29 August 2022 22:40 , Rachel Sharp
The court has concluded for the day.
Jurors will return at 9am on Tuesday as the defence continues to present its case.
Cruz ‘inappropriately touched’ young girl as child, court hears
Monday 29 August 2022 22:20 , Rachel Sharp
Nikolas Cruz was accused of “inappropriately touching” a young girl when he was a child, according to Finai Browd.
Ms Browd said she became best friends with Lynda Cruz – Cruz’s adoptive mother – when they both lived in New York in the 1980s. The friends then both moved to Florida with their husbands and lived near each other.
Lynda adopted two children – Nikolas and Zachary – and Ms Browd also adopted a son and daughter.
Both of their families were very close and their children would spend a lot of time together, she said.
But, she said there was “an incident with Nikolas... inappropriate touching” a young girl.
Despite the incident, the families carried on spending time together until she and Lynda drifted apart some time later.
She said that Lynda stopped bringing the boys round to her house and would only come on her own. Lynda claimed the boys were playing with their friends – but she doubted that because Cruz didn’t have friends, she said.
Then, Lynda started hanging round with someone else and stopped seeing her, she said.
The two women then stopped speaking when Lynda asked to take Ms Browd’s name off her bank accounts – after she testified that she had been added to help her after Roger’s death.
Sometime later, they bumped into each other and she asked: “How are the boys. She said not good”.
That was the last time she saw Lynda, she said. Around a year later, she got a call to say she had died.
“I was devastated,” she sobbed.
Cruz bought mother Valentine’s Day flowers after father’s death
Monday 29 August 2022 21:50 , Rachel Sharp
Finai Browd, who was best friends with Cruz’s adoptive mother Lynda Cruz, told the court that six-year-old Nikolas Cruz wanted to buy his mother Valentine’s Day flowers after his adoptive father Roger died.
Roger died suddenly of a heart attack in August 2004, when Cruz was five.
The following Valentine’s Day, Ms Browd said that Cruz and his younger brother Zachary came to her and her husband Bruce.
“Daddy’s not going to bring Mommy flowers but we want to,” she recalled them telling her. “So we took them to buy [them].”
It was exactly 13 years later on Valentine’s Day 2018 when Cruz murdered 17 students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Video testimony from Lynda’s friend resumes
Monday 29 August 2022 21:20 , Rachel Sharp
The defence has returned to playing video testimony from Finai Browd.
Ms Browd said she became best friends with Lynda Cruz – Cruz’s adoptive mother – when they both lived in New York in the 1980s. The friends then both moved to Florida with their husbands and lived near each other.
When Roger died, Nikolas and Zachary were sent to a grief support group with other children, she said.
Jurors previously heard in courtroom testimony that Cruz was not given grief counseling until four years after Roger’s death.
Court hears about moment Cruz watched father die: ‘Daddy’s dead'
Monday 29 August 2022 21:00 , Rachel Sharp
Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz watched his adoptive father die when he was just five years old, running and telling his mother “daddy’s dead”, jurors heard on Monday.
Finai Browd, who was friends with Cruz’s late adoptive mother Lynda Cruz, described the shocking moment that Cruz witnessed his father Roger’s sudden death from a heart attack in 2004.
She told the court that Lynda had told her Roger was in the family’s den with Nikolas and his younger brother Zachary while she was in the kitchen making lunch.
Suddenly, Nikolas – who was almost six at the time – ran past her crying.
When she asked her son if he was upset because his father had yelled at him, Cruz allegedly gave a harrowing response.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story:
Mother’s friend describes moment Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz watched father die
Prosecutor grills expert
Monday 29 August 2022 20:30 , Rachel Sharp
The prosecution grilled Dr Shameka Stanford about whether she is qualified to administer the tests she carried out on Nikolas Cruz in the aftermath of the shooting.
Dr Stanford, an expert in speech and language, testified that she tested Cruz to determine if he had disorders.
Prosecutors questioned the types of tests she used and whether or not she is qualified to take them – as she is a speech and language pathologist and not a psychologist.
Speech and language expert takes the stand
Monday 29 August 2022 19:49 , Rachel Sharp
The defence has called Dr Shameka Stanford, an expert in speech and language, as its next witness to the stand after Monday’s lunch break.
The judge told jurors that the defence will return to Finai Browd’s testimony after Dr Stanford appears on the stand (Ms Browd’s testimony is a pre-recorded deposition).
Dr Stanford came onto Cruz’s case in 2019 and has reviewed his education and medical history since then.
She said that when he was three years and five months old, his speech and language performance was at the age of just one year and 11 months.
“He was demonstarting the ability and skills of a two-year-old,” she said.
Despite his diagnosis, she said he was treated by a special needs teacher rather than a speech and language specialist – something she said was “problematic”.
Cruz had trouble eating and communicating, witness says
Monday 29 August 2022 19:12 , Rachel Sharp
Nikolas Cruz had trouble eating and communicating and wore diapers until he was five years old, according to the second witness called on Monday.
Finai Browd, who was friends with Cruz’s adoptive mother Lynda Cruz, said that his brother Zachary was also able to use a fork before him even though he was younger.
“He wasn’t able to communicate with words,” she said. “He would communicate with gestures, with his hands.. he would point.”
Friend of Cruz’s adoptive mother says he had few friends
Monday 29 August 2022 18:13 , Rachel Sharp
A friend of Cruz’s adoptive mother described how Nikolas Cruz didn’t have friends as a child and would often be “aggresssive” and throw “tantrums”.
“Children would find it difficult to play with [Cruz] because he was aggressive,” Finai Browd testified.
Ms Browd said that Cruz’s younger brother Zachary had a lot of friends but they “didn’t want to be around” his older brother because of his aggressive tendencies.
Cruz would “throw things” and have tantrums if he didn’t get his own way, she said, saying that it wasn’t like the tantrums other children threw.
“He would kick whatever, the floor, whatever, lay down and scream and cry but not like a normal tantrum a child has,” she said.
Ms Browd said that when Cruz threw tantrums, his mother Lynda Cruz gave him “whatever he wanted”.
“It had to be his way or no way,” she said.
Cruz was “so attached” to his mother – who died three months before the Parkland massacre – and she couldn’t go anywhere without him when he was young.
MOMENTS AGO: “Children would find it difficult to play with [#NikolasCruz] because he was aggressive... Zach had a lot of friends & Nikolas did not... Zach would be invited over to kids’ houses for playdates… Zach’s friends didn’t want to be around...” https://t.co/vL0WjGRpq5 pic.twitter.com/LfScERJ6ub
— WPEC CBS12 News (@CBS12) August 29, 2022
Friend of Cruz’s adoptive mother says she tried to hide fact he wasn’t biological son
Monday 29 August 2022 16:59 , Rachel Sharp
Finai Browd was the second witness to testify on Monday morning.
Ms Browd, gave testimony remotely in a video deposition recorded back on 14 July, was friends with Cruz’s late adoptive mother Lynda Cruz.
She told the court that Lynda wanted children but had multiple miscarriages before she adopted Cruz. Lynda and her husband Roger Cruz adopted Cruz as a baby, followed by Cruz’s biological brother Zachary Cruz.
Ms Browd testified that Lynda hid the fact that Nikolas was adopted from both her and Roger’s family.
She also told Nikolas and Zachary how much they looked like her despite not being biologically related.
“She would tell Nikolas that he looked just like her from a young age,” she said.
Lynda also told Zachary that he looked just like Roger, she said.
Cross-examination: Teacher admits Cruz could be ‘aggressive and violent’
Monday 29 August 2022 16:15 , Rachel Sharp
Under cross-examination, retired teacher Lynn Borden Rodriguez admitted that – despite being smaller than other children – Nikolas Cruz could be “aggressive and violent”.
“He could certainly stand up for himself and become aggressive and violent? [Even though he was small], that didn’t stop him from being aggressive and violent, hitting other kids or teachers?” the prosecutor asked.
Ms Rodriguez confirmed that Cruz – who was in third and fourth grade – was agressive “at times”.
Prosecutors also pointed out that Cruz’s verbal reasoning and non-verbal reasoning skills were in the average range at that time – in a move to push back on the defence’s argument that he had developmental, behavioural and psychological difficulties.
Teacher says Cruz was bullied by brother
Monday 29 August 2022 15:45 , Rachel Sharp
Lynn Borden Rodriguez, a teacher who taught Cruz when he was in third and fourth grade, told the court on Monday morning that he was bullied by his brother Zachary Cruz.
Ms Rodriguez, a retired Broward County schoolteacher, said she was aware of the mass shooter being “bullied in the home” and potentially on the school bus.
When asked to clarify who was doing the bullying, she said: “Zach bullying Nik.”
Zachary shares the same biological mother as Cruz and was also adopted by Lynda and Roger Cruz, growing up in the same home as his brother. He is expected to testify in his brother’s defence.
First witness of the day: Teacher Lynn Borden Rodriguez
Monday 29 August 2022 15:15 , Rachel Sharp
The defence called Lynn Borden Rodriguez as its first witness on Monday morning.
Ms Rodriguez, a retired Broward County schoolteacher, was subpoenaed by the defence to appear in court.
She taught Cruz for part of third grade and fourth grade when she said he was moved into her class with emotional, behavioural and language difficulties.
As a child, she said he was “quiet, aloof, didn’t blend in well with other students” and was often “anxious”.
Academically, she said that Cruz was “below level” in all areas.
She said she found Cruz’s adopted mother Lynda Cruz “receptive” to her suggestions around his needs, including “getting help” following the death of his adopted father Roger Cruz when he was five.
Ron DeSantis ousts four elected school board members over damning Parkland report
Monday 29 August 2022 14:41 , Rachel Sharp
Governor Ron DeSantis has ousted four elected members of a school board in Florida over a damning grand jury report into the Valentine’s Day 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
The governor filed an executive order on Friday suspending Patricia Good, Donna Korn, Ann Murray and Laurie Rich Levinson from Broward County School Board with immediate effect, accusing them of fraud and mismanagement.
“It is my duty to suspend people from office when there is clear evidence of incompetence, neglect of duty, misfeasance or malfeasance,” he said in a press release announcing the suspensions.
Mr DeSantis said that the move marks a “step towards justice” for the Parkland community and is “in the best interest of the residents and students of Broward County and all citizens of Florida”.
The statewide grand jury released its long-awaited report into the Parkland mass shooting on Friday, finding that the four officials displayed “deceit, malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty and incompetence” in their handling of a campus safety program.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story:
Ron DeSantis ousts four elected school board members over Parkland report
Defence to resume its case
Monday 29 August 2022 14:16 , Rachel Sharp
Nikolas Cruz’s defence is about to resume its case in court in Florida.
The team of public defenders began its case last Monday, as they seek to urge jurors to sentence Cruz to life in prison without parole instead of sentencing him to death.
Last week, jurors heard from the killer’s sister Danielle Woodard who was brought from jail to testify for his defence.
Woodard testified that her brother was “polluted” in the womb by their biological mother Brenda Woodard who she said abused alcohol and drugs while pregnant with Cruz.
Jurors also heard from teachers, neighbours and psychiatrists who treated Cruz as a child as the defence seeks to argue that his actions that day were the culmination of psychological issues and a troubled start in life.
One of the most prominent witnesses expected to be called to the stand in the coming days or weeks is Cruz’s brother Zachary Cruz.
Cruz had dreams of killing people and being covered in blood, trial hears
Friday 26 August 2022 14:15 , Oliver O'Connell
Nikolas Cruz had dreams of killing people and being covered in blood four years before he carried out the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, according to chilling evidence presented in court.
Rachel Sharp reports on today’s revelation.
Nikolas Cruz had dreams about killing people and being covered in blood, trial hears
Cruz’s Chilling jailhouse drawings revealed
Friday 26 August 2022 13:45 , Oliver O'Connell
Chilling jailhouse drawings and notes have revealed Nikolas Cruz saying he wants to “go to death row” and then be “buried with a woman who had a s***ty life like me”.
Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) released a trove of disturbing sketches and ramblings which were scrawled by the mass murderer while he is being held behind bars in Broward County Jail.
In the 30 pages of incoherent ramblings, the 23-year-old has drawn disturbing images of the devil and pictures appearing to depict the Valentine’s Day 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Rachel Sharp reports.
Nikolas Cruz’s chilling jailhouse drawings released
What happened during the Parkland massacre?
Friday 26 August 2022 13:15 , Oliver O'Connell
Almost 70 documented incidents of violence by age 19. Boasts online of being “the next school shooter”. Tips about threatening behaviour ignored by the FBI. Unlocked and unmanned gates at the school. Students and staff left to wander hallways while no active shooter alert was made. A school resource officer who hid from the gunfire for more than 45 minutes.
Nearly everything that could have gone wrong that day did.
Missed warning signs, failings and lessons learned: Nikolas Cruz and Parkland
Cruz’s sister says brother came from ‘polluted womb’
Friday 26 August 2022 12:30 , Oliver O'Connell
Nikolas Cruz’s sister told his sentencing trial that he came from the “polluted womb” of their mother who put her addiction to drugs and alcohol “before anything else”.
Danielle Woodard was the second witness to testify for the defence on Monday as Cruz’s legal team seek to argue that he suffers from foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and other anti-social behavioural disorders caused in part by his mother drinking and taking drugs while pregnant.
Rachel Sharp reports.
Nikolas Cruz’s sister says brother came from ‘polluted womb’
