Nikolas Cruz sentencing trial updates: 'Perfectly normal' people have gunman's IQ of 83, doctor says
FORT LAUDERDALE — Jurors returned to a Fort Lauderdale courtroom Tuesday for what's expected to be the final stretch in the sentencing trial of Nikolas Cruz, the Parkland school gunman.
Cruz pleaded guilty in 2021 to killing 17 people and wounding 17 others at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
A 12-person jury will recommend whether Cruz, then 19 and now 24, is put to death or sentenced to life in prison. If it recommends death, a move that must be unanimous, Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer will make the final ruling.
Cruz's team of public defenders rested its case on Sept. 14, setting the stage for prosecutors' rebuttal and closing arguments over the coming weeks.
The Palm Beach Post is covering the daily proceedings live. Follow below for updates throughout Tuesday, Oct. 4.
'He dreams of killing others': Witnesses say Nikolas Cruz's childhood marked by paranoia, aggression
Time hasn't healed Parkland's wounds: Lives of victims' families marked by absence, anguish, sorrow
Cruz's IQ of 83 is 'perfectly normal,' doctor says
Dr. Robert Denney, a clinical neuropsychologist from Missouri hired by the prosecutors, testified Tuesday that Cruz's intelligence quotient of 83 sounds worse than it actually is.
"Even perfectly normal people can have IQ and reasoning ability of 83," Denney said.
Cruz's IQ came to light in September with the testimony of Paul Connor, a clinical neuropsychologist and expert on fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. The average person has an IQ of 100 and someone with fetal alcohol syndrome averages a 90 IQ.
Alcohol's impact on a fetus is worse than that of heroin, cocaine and nicotine, according to Connor. Brenda Woodard, Cruz's birth mother, drank beer and wine and also used crack cocaine regularly while she was pregnant.
Alcohol is a "teratogenic drug" that, unlike substances like cocaine, kills cells in the fetus. Lead prosecutor Michael Satz asked Connor if Cruz could have faked his low test score, which Connor said was unlikely.
"These kind of scores are perfectly normal," Denney said.
A score of 83 is the exact middle school observed among truck drivers and construction workers, he said, and it's "not necessarily indicative of brain impairment."
Neuropsychologist said Cruz 'grossly exaggerated' cognitive complaints
Denney administered a series of tests in March measuring Cruz's cognitive function. The gunman's performance on tests was so poor, he said, that he thinks he cheated.
"This is not what you see with real memory impairment," Denney told the jurors. "This is what you see when somebody's playing games with you."
The doctor, who described himself as one of seven people in the world with board certifications in both forensic psychology and clinical neuropsychology, said Cruz "grossly exaggerated" his memory complaints, depression and other health concerns.
"This is the most extreme impairment and attention deficit seen in the history of the world," Denney said, motioning to a presentation slide with Cruz's test results on it. "It doesn't make clinical sense to me."
It takes a degree of attention to complete these tests, Denney said. If Cruz was as impaired as the test results indicate, he wouldn't have been able to complete it to begin with.
Denney called the test results "trash," and said he believes Cruz can perform at a higher level than he would have others believe. The testimony supports what Dr. Charles Scott said Monday, that Cruz was either faking or exaggerating his symptoms and could control his behavior when he wanted to.
"He's almost maxing out every scale in this test," Denney said. "That's not valid. People don't do that."
Hannah Phillips is a journalist covering public safety and criminal justice at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at hphillips@pbpost.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Parkland shooter trial: Low IQ doesn't mean Cruz impaired, doctor says
