Nikolas Cruz (right) killed 17 people and injured another 17 at a high school in Parkland, Florida (Pictures: AP Getty)
After deliberating for one day, a jury has not recommended the death penalty for Nikolas Cruz, who conducted the deadliest school shooting in US history.
The decision to recommend the death penalty has to be unanimous among the 12 jurors. It is not immediately clear how many jurors objected to his execution.
Cruz will now face life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Cruz sat in the courtroom with his head down, staring at the desk as Judge Elizabeth Scherer read each of the names of each of his victims for each of the 17 murder charges.
Nikolas Cruz holds his head as the judge reads the jury’s penalty recommendations for his murder charges
Judge Elizabeth Scherer read the charges for each murdered student and teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
Although the jury found each of the murders ‘especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel,’ they came to the conclusion that Cruz’s defense proved his developmental disorders outweighed the aggravating factors in each case, making him ineligible for the death penalty.
The mood in the courtroom was somber. Parents of the victims could be seen crying, others shook their heads and expressed disappointment.
After the final verdict was read, Judge Scherer polled each juror individually to confirm that they agreed. Several answered quietly, seemingly choking back tears.
Before Cruz could be sentenced, prosecutors asked that his victims be given an opportunity to express themselves. The judge agreed, and set his sentencing date to November 1.
Prosecutors listen as it becomes clear Cruz will not face the death penalty
Parents of one of the victims listen as the judge reads Cruz’s sentence for each count
In 2018, Cruz shot an AR-15 style assault rifle into several classrooms at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. He killed 17 people and injured another 17 over the course of 6 minutes.
Cruz escaped by blending in with fleeing students, but was apprehended hours later. He confessed to the shooting shortly after his arrest.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz stands as jurors enter during the penalty phase of his trial at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale (Picture: Reuters)
Broward County Sheriff’s Office crime lab manger George Bello holds the weapon used by Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz as he testifies during the penalty phase in Cruz’s trial (Picture: AP)
A grand jury indicted Cruz for 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder. In October 2021, Cruz pleaded guilty to all charges. His trial phase was skipped and the court proceeded directly to the penalty phase.
Cruz’s penalty phase began in July 2022.
Prosecutors argued that Cruz had a deliberate, well thought-out plan for his attack. Assistant State Attorney Mike Satz called Cruz’s shooting a ‘goal-directed, planned, systematic murder – mass murder.’
Jurors heard from both survivors of Cruz’s deadly attack and family members of the students and faculty killed.
Nikolas Cruz sits in a McDonald’s immediately after the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
Nikolas Cruz is arrested hours after the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (Picture: Getty Images)
They also embarked on a rare visit to the crime scene, which was preserved at Marjory Stoneman Douglas since 2018.
Cruz’s defense attorneys argued that he was severely mentally ill, partially stemming from the effects of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
They called witnesses to testify that Cruz’s estranged birth mother drank and used drugs while she was pregnant with him, giving him a permanent disability.
His brain was irretrievably broken, through no fault of his own,’ defense attorney Melissa McNeil said.
Linda Beigel Schulman, Michael Schulman, Patricia Padauy Oliver and Fred Guttenberg, families of the victims, embrace in the courtroom while waiting for an expected verdict in the penalty phase of the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale (Picture: AP)
Ilan Alhadeff speaks angrily while giving his victim impact statement during the penalty phase of the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale. Alhadeff’s daughter, Alyssa, was killed in the 2018 shootings (Credits: AP)
Linda Beigel Schulman holds a photograph of her son, Scott Beigel, before giving her victim impact statement (Picture: REUTERS)
However, a psychologist testifying for the prosecution disputed these claims. According to Robert Denney, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder does not explain Cruz’s expressed hatred for black people, hatred for women, and obsession with swastikas.
In one of the most shocking moments of the trial, the prosecution played portions of a taped conversation between Denney and Cruz. The shooter told the psychologist that he chose to conduct his massacre on Valentine’s Day to ‘ruin’ the holiday for his former high school.
‘I thought no one would love me,’ Cruz said. ‘And I didn’t like Valentine’s Day and I wanted to ruin it for everyone.’
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Nikolas Cruz will now face life in prison without the possibility of parole.