MIAMI — The long-awaited trial for Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz may be delayed, possibly for months.
Prosecutors are asking that the Feb. 21 sentencing trial be postponed to give attorneys more time to prepare. The Broward state attorney’s office, in a recently filed motion, cited the extensive amount of pretrial legal work that still needs to be completed revolving around mental health experts who may testify at trial.
“There is not enough available time remaining for the necessary depositions, motions, and expert testing to be completed,” prosecutors wrote. “As a result,the State will not be able to be ready for trial on February 21, 2022.”
In a motion made public Monday, prosecutors also pointed out that victims, and relatives of the dead, have been told of the need for more time. Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer, who has been pushing lawyers on both sides to start the trial, could address the issue Wednesday during a previously scheduled pretrial hearing.
The move to postpone the trial comes two weeks before the four-year anniversary of the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland, the worst school shooting in Florida history.
Last year, Cruz pleaded guilty to 17 counts of first-degree murder and 17 counts of attempted murder. Under Florida law, a jury must be convened to consider whether Cruz should be sentenced to life in prison or sent to death row to await execution. By law, the jury‘s decision must be unanimous.
In Cruz’s case, jurors will be asked to consider “mitigating” factors, such as his long history of emotional and mental instability and violent outbursts. Since the guilty plea, the Broward public defender’s office has listed 16 defense witnesses, many of them mental health experts who presumably will testify about Cruz’s mental troubles.
In Florida, lawyers are allowed to conduct “depositions,” or the questioning of witnesses from the other side. In its filing, the Broward state attorney’s office said it still needs to conduct 25 depositions — and attend 11 hearings — before Feb. 21. And the state may need to get more counterexperts, who would also have to be deposed by the defense.
“The State is now in an untenable position as the trial date quickly approaches,” prosecutors wrote.
If the judge agrees, exactly when the trial would start is unclear. Prosecutors suggested a “status” hearing in late March, to update the judge on progress of the pretrial litigation.
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