Florida prosecutors will seek death penalty for Parkland high school shooter

By Monivette Cordeiro on Tue, Mar 13, 2018 at 2:04 pm

Photo via WPTV

Broward County prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Nikolas Cruz, the 19-year-old accused of killing 17 students and teachers at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland last month.

The state's formal notice of intent to seek the death penalty against Cruz was filed Tuesday by Broward State Attorney Michael J. Satz.

Cruz was indicted last week on 17 counts of premeditated murder in the first degree and 17 counts of attempted murder in the first degree, for a total of 34 charges.

The Sun Sentinel reports that Cruz's attorneys had previously taken the position that the suspect committed mass shooting and would "plead guilty if prosecutors would agree to drop the death penalty as a possible punishment."

This story is breaking. Check back here for further updates.

Stay on top of Orlando news and views. Sign up for our weekly Headlines newsletter.

Tags:

WE LOVE OUR READERS!

Since 1990, Orlando Weekly has served as the free, independent voice of Orlando, and we want to keep it that way.

Becoming an Orlando Weekly Supporter for as little as $5 a month allows us to continue offering readers access to our coverage of local news, food, nightlife, events, and culture with no paywalls.

Join today because you love us, too.