Nikolas Cruz trial live updates Wednesday: Jury requests may delay verdict in death-penalty case

FORT LAUDERDALE — The fate of Nikolas Cruz's life is now in jurors hands.

A panel of seven men and five women have two choices: Death or life in prison without parole for the shooting at a Parkland high school more than four years ago. If the jury opts for execution, Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer can follow the recommendation or choose to sentence him to life instead.

Cruz, then 19 and now 24, pleaded guilty in 2021 to killing 17 people and wounding 17 others at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018. The stories of the victims' own execution were retold in graphic detail over the course of the three-month trial.

Patiently waiting: Life or death decision: Jury will begin deliberations on confessed school shooter's fate

Prosecutors and defense attorneys presented their closing arguments Tuesday. The state urged jurors to sentence Cruz to death while his public defenders asked for mercy, insisting the gunman "was doomed" from birth.

The Palm Beach Post is covering the daily proceedings live. Follow the entries below for updates throughout Wednesday, Oct. 12.

Prosecution rests: Parkland gunman's fate in juror's hands

'He dreams of killing others': Witnesses say Nikolas Cruz's childhood marked by paranoia, aggression

6 minutes of terror: New revelations rise as Parkland survivors recount Nikolas Cruz attack

Jurors end first day of deliberations without a verdict

The jury ended its first day of deliberations without reaching a verdict.

But before they were released for the day, Judge Elizabeth Scherer received a request from the jury asking to see the AR-15 rifle used by Cruz.

The Broward County Sheriff's Office rejected the request, according to Scherer, for security reasons even though the rifle would not be loaded when given to the jurors.

Scherer said she needed to "stay in her lane" and didn't want to overrule BSO's decision.

Prosecutor Michael Satz objected saying he's been involved in many cases where jurors were able to examine weapons during deliberations.

"This is ridiculous," said Satz, adding jurors in his prior cases have requested to see "machetes" which he said "are much more dangerous" than an unloaded gun.

The situation will be ironed out on Thursday before the jury resumes deliberations.

Jurors will stay overnight at an undisclosed hotel until they reach a verdict.

The conditions will not be luxurious. Jurors will not have televisions in their rooms and can not bring any electronic equipment — phones, iPads, Kindles, etc. — with them.

Judge Elizabeth Scherer advised jurors to bring a book with them because they will not be allowed to read newspapers, magazines or just about anything else while they are deliberating.

Even the content of the books will be reviewed by the Broward County Sheriff's deputies that will be monitoring the jurors. Scherer told jurors not to bring any books having to do with legal issues and specifically mentioned best-selling author John Grisham as an example.

The jurors will also be limited to one phone call a day with family members. Scherer asked that jurors ask family to turn off any location devices that might reveal where the jury is staying.

Jury requests for evidence means verdict not likely soon

The 12-person jury reversed course Wednesday afternoon, first requesting to hear the testimony of two neurologists — a defense expert and a prosecution expert — before deciding they did not need to re-hear the the prosecution's witness.

Jurors did hear the cross examination of defense expert Paul Connor who testified on Sept. 12 and 13 that Cruz suffered mental-health issues related to his mother's drinking and use of crack cocaine while she was pregnant.

During their cross-examination of Connor, prosecutors skewered his credentials and raised questions regarding his expert opinion.

After hearing Connor's cross-examination read by a court reporter, the jury foreman advised Judge Elizabeth Scherer they no longer need to re-hear the testimony of Robert Denney, who said that Cruz faked the symptoms of fetal alcohol syndrome.

Not reading Denney's testimony, which took place over the course of two days, likely will shorten the length of time jurors will deliberate.

Scherer warned that reading all of the experts' testimony could even "take four or five days."

The jury also requested to see The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and a copy of the guidelines by The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Scherer denied the requests because those items were not placed into evidence during the trial.

The 12-member panel is supposed to work today until about 5 p.m. If an verdict is not reached — and that appears highly unlikely to take place by the end of today — they will be taken to a hotel, where they will be sequestered overnight. Deliberations would resume Thursday morning.

After receiving lengthy instructions, jury begins deliberating Cruz's fate

WATCH LIVE:

Jurors began deliberating Wednesday morning at about 10:45 a.m., after receiving nearly an hour of instructions from Judge Elizabeth Scherer.

If the jury does not reach a verdict by the end of the day, they will be sequestered overnight at an undisclosed location and return Thursday morning to resume deliberations.

Scherer implored the jury to take time deciding each of the 17 counts of first-degree murder, reminding the panel that a "human life is at stake."

Scherer listed seven "aggravating" factors — a circumstance that increases the gravity of a crime — that the jury must consider. Cruz's defense attorneys presented 41 "mitigating" factors — anything in the defendant's background that would make the death penalty an inappropriate punishment.

Aggravating factors must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. There is no such threshold for mitigating factors.

The first order of business, per Scherer's instructions, will be to select a foreperson.

Instead of transporting Cruz back to his Broward County Jail, he will remain in a holding cell at the Broward County Courthouse while he awaits a verdict.

Scherer has asked the jury to deliberate until about 5 p.m. Jurors arrived at the courthouse on Wednesday morning with suitcases. Scherer said they should have a change of clothing for two days.

Ten alternate jurors were released by Scherer, but warned not to speak about their experience until a verdict has been announced.

Cruz judge warned jurors against heeding her own bias

The judge forbade jurors from allowing anything but the factors laid out in their instructions to influence their decision — including her own demeanor.

“Please disregard anything I may have said or done that made you think I prefer one decision or another,” Scherer said.

The judge’s impartiality has come under scrutiny numerous times throughout the trial. Cruz’s defense team asked Scherer to disqualify herself in September after the judge ripped into them for resting their case 40 witnesses early. It was the second time the defense asked for Scherer's recusal.

Lead defender Melisa McNeil objected to the judge insulting her at the time and said she believed she should be able to defend herself.

"Do that later," the judge snapped. "You've been insulting me the entire trial, blatantly. Taking your headphones off, arguing with me, storming out, coming late intentionally if you don't like my rulings. Quite frankly, this has been long overdue. So please be seated."

Prosecutors said in response to the defense's motion that Scherer has been respectful to both sides.

Related: Defense attorneys ask judge to withdraw after a day of verbal confrontations

Yet tense moments between Scherer and McNeill have punctuated the proceedings for months. McNeill threatened to remove herself from the case in June after Scherer denied her request to delay jury selection — then she motioned for the judge to remove herself instead. Scherer denied the motion.

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This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Nikolas Cruz trial: Jurors to decide life, death for Parkland shooter