Nikolas Cruz, 24, escaped capital punishment last month after jurors failed to rule unanimously in favor of his conviction for 17 semi-automatic rifle murders at his former high school in Parkland, North from Miami. The non-use of the death penalty shocked and upset several relatives of victims last month.
Weeping families of victims held hands on Wednesday as Judge Elizabeth Scherer handed down the 17 murder convictions, saying after each victim’s name: “The court imposes a mandatory life sentence with no possibility of Conditional liberation.”
“Completely unfair”
During the two days of hearings that ended with the sentencing, parents were allowed to express their grief and anger by addressing the defendant directly – something they were not allowed to do. right to do at trial.
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“My hope […] is that the pain of what you did to my family consumes you and traumatizes you every day, ”said Lori Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter was killed, according to comments collected by public radio NPR. Relatives and survivors on Tuesday and Wednesday called Nikolas Cruz a monster and a “murdering bastard” deserving to “burn in hell,”
In an undisguised rage, several attacked the judicial system for having spared the life of the accused, located six meters from them from their desk. “The idea that you, a cold-blooded killer, can live every day, eat your meals and rest at night seems completely unfair,” said teacher Stacey Lippel, injured in the shooting, reports CBS News. “The only comfort I have is that your life in prison will be filled with horror and fear.”
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On February 14, 2018, Nikolas Cruz, then 17, caused fear by opening fire in Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, from which he had been expelled a year earlier. In less than ten minutes, he had killed 14 students and three adults, and injured 17 others. In October 2021, he pleaded guilty to murder and attempted murder.