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The gunman who killed 17 radical successful the Parkland shooting was sentenced to life successful prison without parole Wednesday for the 2018 precocious schoolhouse massacre successful Florida. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer had nary prime but to enforce the condemnation arsenic the assemblage successful the punishment proceedings could not unanimously agree that Nikolas Cruz deserved the decease penalty.
Before the gunman formally received his condemnation for the Valentine's Day massacre astatine Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School successful suburban Fort Lauderdale, household members of the victims, and survivors of the shooting, were fixed clip to code him.
"It was highly achy to perceive each the horrific details of this massacre astatine our children's precocious school," Annika Dworet, who with her husband, Mitch, attended each time of the gunman's trial. "Just to beryllium successful the aforesaid country arsenic this monster who killed our lad Nicholas and attempted to execution our lad Alex. It's unbearable."
She continued, "One of the astir disgusting and unprofessional actions that occurred successful this courtroom was the defence squad holding, touching and giggling with this cold-blooded murderer."
The gunman, shackled and wearing a reddish jailhouse jumpsuit, stared astatine the speakers but showed small emotion, arsenic helium did the time before. He removed a look disguise aft Jennifer Guttenberg, parent of Jaime Guttenberg, told him helium shouldn't beryllium wearing one.
"It's disrespectful to beryllium hiding your expressions nether your disguise erstwhile we arsenic the families are sitting present talking to you, lowered down successful your seat, hunched over, trying to marque yourself look guiltless erstwhile you're not," Guttenberg said.
Since Tuesday, members of the victims' families and immoderate of the 17 wounded who survived the shooting didn't discarded the accidental to verbally thrash the gunman face-to-face aft astir 5 years.
"The thought that you, a cold-blooded killer, tin really unrecorded each day, devour your meals and enactment your caput down astatine nighttime seems wholly unjust," teacher Stacey Lippel, who was wounded successful the shooting, told the gunman. "The lone comfortableness I person is that your beingness successful situation volition beryllium filled with fearfulness and fear, truthful my anticipation for you is that you die, sooner alternatively than later."
Those who spoke went to a lectern astir 20 feet from the 24-year-old gunman, stared him successful the oculus and fto retired their choler and grief. Many besides criticized a Florida instrumentality that requires assemblage unanimity for a decease condemnation to beryllium imposed — jurors voted 9-3 connected Oct. 13 for execution.
"He has escaped this punishment due to the fact that a number of the assemblage was fixed the powerfulness to overturn the bulk determination made by radical who were capable to spot him for what helium is — a remorseless monster who deserves nary mercy," Meghan Petty said. Her younger sister, 14-year-old Alaina, died erstwhile the gunman fired his AR-15-style semiautomatic firearm into her schoolroom arsenic helium stalked the halls of a three-story gathering for 7 minutes, firing 140 shots. He had been readying the shooting for 7 months.
"A idiosyncratic has to beryllium incredibly sick to privation to wounded different quality being. Even sicker to dwell connected the tendency and trade a program and unimaginably evil to execute that plan, which didn't conscionable wounded radical but ended lives," she said. "To adhd insult to execution helium was adjacent arrogant capable to program a disguise believing that he'd beryllium capable to flight his actions portion my sister laic dying connected a soiled schoolroom floor."
The gunman, a erstwhile Stoneman Douglas pupil and past 19, wore a schoolhouse garment truthful that helium could blend successful with fleeing students arsenic helium escaped. He was arrested an hr later.
Patricia Oliver, who mislaid her lad Joaquin, railed connected Tuesday against the defense attorneys who'd argued their lawsuit should beryllium spared due to the fact that of his mother's cause and intoxicant maltreatment portion large and helium ne'er got the assistance helium needed.
"Karma," she said, "will yet drawback up to you all."
Patricia Padauy Oliver speaks during the sentencing proceeding for Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz astatine the Broward County Courthouse successful Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Nov. 1, 2022.
Amy Beth Bennett/Pool via Reuters
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