FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Nearly three months after testimony started in the sentencing trial of confessed Parkland gunman Nikolas Cruz, the defendant’s fate is officially in the hands of a jury — seven men and five women who just asked a Broward judge for hours of testimony to be read back in court.
Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer read the set of instructions Wednesday morning, advising the jury that they are to decide 17 times whether Cruz, 24, deserves the death penalty for the murders he committed on Feb. 14, 2018, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
Every victim’s name was read. Each senseless, inexcusable death must be weighed independently. Every murder can be considered as an aggravating factor for the other 16. Cruz, the confident, purposeful shooter who bragged about his plans in selfie videos he recorded before the shooting, appeared far less confident as the jury was instructed on the law.
