- A Broward County jury rejected the death penalty for convicted Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz
- Governor Ron DeSantis decried the jury’s decision, saying Cruz deserved death
- DeSantis also ripped the lengthy legal process required in a case where everyone knew Cruz was guilty
- The judge in the case has yet to impose a sentence, but now cannot impose the death penalty because of the jury’s decision
Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday he was “very disappointed” after a jury rejected the death penalty and recommended that Nikolas Cruz serve life in prison for murdering 17 people in 2018 at a Parkland High School. Cruz pleaded guilty to 17 counts of first-degree murder and 17 counts of attempted first-degree murder in the February 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
“That is a case where you’re massacring those students with premeditation and utter disregard for basic humanity … you deserve the death penalty,” DeSantis said during an appearance in Cape Coral.
The mass shooting spurred lawmakers in 2018 to pass gun and school-safety measures, which were signed by then-Gov. Rick Scott. DeSantis, who was elected governor later that year, pushed in 2019 to remove then-Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel from office over the handling of the shooting. The state Senate ultimately approved Israel’s ouster.
DeSantis on Thursday also decried the lengthy legal process after the school massacre.
“You know, they used to do this, he would have been executed in six months. He’s guilty, everybody knew that from the beginning. And yet it takes years and years in this legal system. That is not serving the interest of victims,” DeSantis, a Harvard-educated lawyer, said.
Broward County Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer did not immediately sentence Cruz. Under state law, juries have to unanimously recommend death for the sentence to be imposed on defendants.
Gov DeSantis’ views are consistent with Sharia law as practiced in Saudi Arabia
And you, Mike Manderscheid, are a simpleton for making such an asinine statement. Do you not apply logic and critical thinking for attention or are you incapable of applying logic and critical thought?
I am a consistent DeSantis supporter, but I must express the belief that he should not have criticized the jury’s decision. My criticism has nothing to do with Cruz’s sentence. DeSantis is a constitutional officer and should support a constitutional process, such as a jury’s verdict. It was a Broward County Jury in a Broward County court with a Broward County Judge. This verdict illustrates that our system provides due process to even the most vile and heinous criminals. The system works. Justice is still blind in Broward County! In this awake day and age, in this Progressive Democrat county, you can stil get a fair trial and be judged by your peers without prejudice. Hurray for Broward County! Kudos to the presiding judge!
Nonsense! Had this trial taken place in a red part of the state, this guy would die! This was a liberal Broward County jury with a liberal outcome.
So much for the “pro life” party.