The Parkland school shooter is set to be sentenced to life in prison today - CNN

CNN  — 

The gunman who murdered 17 radical successful 2018 astatine a South Florida precocious schoolhouse is expected to beryllium sentenced Wednesday to beingness successful situation without the anticipation of parole, bringing to a adjacent an agonizing, monthslong proceedings successful which a assemblage declined to urge a decease sentence.

Nikolas Cruz, 24, is archetypal facing much of his victims successful tribunal earlier Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer formally levies the condemnation recommended past month, an result that disappointed and angered galore relatives of those helium killed – a sentiment galore voiced successful their unfortunate interaction grounds this week.

“It is heartbreaking however immoderate idiosyncratic who heard and saw each this did not springiness this slayer the worst punishment possible,” Annika Dworet, the parent of 17-year-old unfortunate Nicholas Dworet, said Wednesday. “As we each cognize the worst punishment successful the authorities of Florida is the decease penalty. How overmuch worse would the transgression person to beryllium to warrant the decease penalty?”

LIVE UPDATES: Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz to beryllium formally sentenced

Wednesday marked the 2nd time of affectional unfortunate interaction testimony, pursuing an earlier circular Tuesday, erstwhile galore victims’ relatives and immoderate of the shooting’s survivors confronted Cruz.

“I’m excessively aged to spot you unrecorded retired your beingness sentence, but I anticipation your ever(y) breathing infinitesimal present connected Earth is miserable and you repent for your sins,” Theresa Robinovitz, the grandma of slain 14-year-old Alyssa Alhadeff, told the shooter Tuesday. “And pain successful hell.”

Cruz pleaded blameworthy past twelvemonth to 17 counts of execution and 17 counts of attempted execution for the massacre astatine Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School successful Parkland, Florida, which despite the continued American weapon unit epidemic remains the deadliest wide shooting astatine a US precocious school.

The authorities sought the decease penalty, and truthful Cruz’s proceedings moved to the sentencing phase, successful which a assemblage was tasked with proceeding prosecutors and defence attorneys reason reasons they felt helium should oregon should not beryllium enactment to death.

The prosecution argued, successful part, the shooting was particularly heinous, atrocious oregon cruel and was premeditated and calculated. The defense, pushing for a beingness sentence, pointed to the shooter’s intelligence oregon intelligence deficits they said stemmed from prenatal intoxicant exposure.

Three jurors were persuaded to ballot for life, sparing Cruz a decease sentence, which successful Florida a assemblage indispensable unanimously recommend. Scherer indispensable travel the jury’s proposal of beingness without parole, per authorities law.

Still, the beingness condemnation fell abbreviated of what galore of those Cruz wounded and the families of those helium killed wanted.

“It’s really, truly sad. I miss my small boy,” Max Schachter, the begetter of 14-year-old unfortunate Alex Schachter, told CNN connected Wednesday earlier the sentencing. “It’s not close that the worst precocious schoolhouse shooter successful US past fundamentally gets what helium wants,” helium said, referring to Cruz’s beingness sentence.

“He shouldn’t live,” Anthony Montalto III, whose older sister Gina, 14, was killed successful the shooting, said during grounds Tuesday, “while my sister rots successful the grave.”

Of those killed, 14 were students, and 3 were unit members who perished moving toward information oregon trying to assistance students to safety.

The slain students were: Alyssa Alhadeff, 14; Martin Duque Anguiano, 14; Nicholas Dworet, 17; Jaime Guttenberg, 14; Luke Hoyer, 15; Cara Loughran, 14; Gina Montalto, 14; Joaquin Oliver, 17; Alaina Petty, 14; Meadow Pollack, 18; Helena Ramsay, 17; Alex Schachter, 14; Carmen Schentrup, 16; and Peter Wang, 15.

Geography teacher Scott Beigel, 35; wrestling manager Chris Hixon, 49; and adjunct shot manager Aaron Feis, 37, besides were killed.

A batch is inactive unclear astir what Cruz’s aboriginal volition look like. He’ll apt beryllium held successful Broward County custody earlier being handed implicit to the Florida Department of Corrections and taken to 1 of respective reception centers crossed the state.

There, Cruz volition walk weeks undergoing carnal and intelligence examinations, Florida transgression defence lawyer Janet Johnson has told CNN. “They’ll look astatine his record, they’ll look astatine the level of transgression that he’s convicted of, which is evidently the highest, and they’ll urge a installation determination successful the state,” she said.

Which installation is determined by factors including the seriousness of the offense, the magnitude of condemnation and the inmate’s anterior transgression record, per the Florida State Department of Corrections website. Typically, those convicted of the astir superior offenses oregon with the longest sentences are placed successful the astir unafraid facilities, the website says.

Because Cruz is simply a high-risk offender, helium volition apt beryllium placed successful a situation with different high-profile oregon “very unsafe criminals,” Johnson said.

“But helium wouldn’t beryllium isolated, which of course, is simply a existent menace for him due to the fact that determination whitethorn beryllium radical who privation to bash ‘prison justice,’ who didn’t consciousness that the condemnation helium got successful tribunal was enough,” Johnson added.

The corrections section did not reply CNN’s question astir what benignant of intelligence wellness attraction Cruz whitethorn person portion successful prison. During the trial, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office released much than 30 pages of writings and drawings by Cruz which revealed disturbing thoughts helium has had portion successful custody, focusing connected guns, humor and death.

On 1 page, Cruz wrote that helium wanted to spell to decease row, portion connected different helium told his household helium was bittersweet and hoped to dice of a bosom onslaught by taking painkillers and done utmost eating.

As for the victims and their families, the extremity of the gunman’s proceedings marks simply the adjacent of 1 section successful a lifelong travel with grief.

“I privation to enactment this down me,” Max Schachter told CNN connected Wednesday. “I’m going to tribunal aboriginal today. He volition beryllium sentenced to life, and I volition ne'er deliberation astir this murderer again.”