https://sputnikglobe.com/20221015/jurors-in-parkland-shooting-case-reported-feeling-threatened-and-disrespected-during-deliberations-1101868369.html
Jurors in Parkland Shooting Case Reported Feeling Threatened and Disrespected During Deliberations
Jurors in Parkland Shooting Case Reported Feeling Threatened and Disrespected During Deliberations
Sputnik International
On Thursday, a jury in the Parkland school massacre case ruled that school shooter Nikolas Cruz would not get the death penalty, instead recommending life in... 15.10.2022, Sputnik International
2022-10-15T03:15+0000
2022-10-15T03:15+0000
2022-10-15T03:15+0000
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A Florida jury in the case of the gunman who killed 17 people, including students, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018 decided not to pursue the death sentence for Cruz. However, the jury was so divided in their deliberations that one juror reported feeling threatened by another panelist. The “threat,” according to prosecutor Carolyn McCann, will not affect the jury’s decision, but was reported out of safety reasons and may be investigated by the Broward Sheriff’s Office.According to the SunSentinel, none of the jurors looked at Cruz as they reentered the courtroom after deliberating. The jurors told a local TV station that the final vote was nine to three in favor of the death penalty. However, Florida law requires a unanimous vote. One of the jurors who voted for life said she had seen evidence in the trial that Cruz had been “failed” by the mental health system.“There were negative sarcastic remarks,” said Melody Vanoy, a juror in the case. “I heard comments like, ‘we’re going to let the families down.’”“It got ugly,” Vanoy said.According to Richard Escobar and David Weinstein, who are criminal defense attorneys in Florida, a threat made to a juror cannot overturn the jury’s decision because of double jeopardy. Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer said she would not direct the sheriff’s office to investigate the threat made by one juror to another, but said the office could investigate it if they thought it was appropriate.“I don’t like how it turned out, but… that’s how the jury system works,” said Benjamin Thomas, the jury foreman.The prosecution team, led by Mike Satz, had argued that Cruz was aware of his actions and that his ability to “formulate and carry out” the attack should overshadow his mental and developmental issues which the defense argued were left untreated.“After spending months and months listening, and hearing testimonies, and looking at the murderer – his composure – I believe justice was not done,” said Anne Ramsay, the mother of a senior student who was killed by Cruz in the shooting. “The wrong verdict was given out today.”Tony Montalto, who lost his daughter Gina in the shooting, and is the president of the advocacy group Stand with Parkland, called the ruling “yet another gut punch for so many of us who devastatingly lost our loved ones on that tragic Valentine’s Day at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.”
https://sputnikglobe.com/20221013/florida-jury-recommends-life-sentence-for-parkland-school-shooter-nikolas-cruz-1101820241.html
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Jurors in Parkland Shooting Case Reported Feeling Threatened and Disrespected During Deliberations
On Thursday, a jury in the Parkland school massacre case ruled that school shooter Nikolas Cruz would not get the death penalty, instead recommending life in prison without parole. Family members of the 2018 school shooting victims were enraged by the jury’s decision. But one juror said she “felt the system failed” Cruz repeatedly.
A Florida jury in the case of the gunman who killed 17 people, including students, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018 decided not to pursue the death sentence for Cruz. However, the jury was so divided in their deliberations that one juror reported feeling
threatened by another panelist. The “threat,” according to prosecutor Carolyn McCann, will not affect the jury’s decision, but was reported out of safety reasons and may be investigated by the Broward Sheriff’s Office.
According to the
SunSentinel, none of the jurors looked at Cruz as they reentered the courtroom after deliberating. The jurors told a local TV station that the final vote was nine to three in favor of the death penalty. However, Florida law requires a unanimous vote. One of the jurors who voted for life said she had seen evidence in the trial that Cruz had been “failed” by the mental health system.
“There were negative sarcastic remarks,” said Melody Vanoy, a juror in the case. “I heard comments like, ‘we’re going to let the families down.’”
“I felt disrespected, despite the relationships that we had built,” she added. “The energy was so heated that we wanted to get out of that room. They had to take us down for over 30 minutes to just give us fresh air so we can move around and separate. That’s how heated it got.”
“It got ugly,” Vanoy said.
13 October 2022, 16:00 GMT
According to Richard Escobar and David Weinstein, who are criminal defense attorneys in Florida, a threat made to a juror cannot overturn the jury’s decision because of double jeopardy. Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer said she would not direct the sheriff’s office to investigate the threat made by one juror to another, but said the office could investigate it if they thought it was appropriate.
“I don’t like how it turned out, but… that’s how the jury system works,” said Benjamin Thomas, the jury foreman.
“There was one with a hard ‘no’ – she couldn’t do it. And there was another two that ended up voting the same way,” Thomas said. The woman who voted against “didn’t believe, because he was mentally ill, he should get the death penalty,” Thomas said.
The prosecution team, led by Mike Satz, had argued that Cruz was aware of his actions and that his ability to “formulate and carry out” the attack should overshadow his mental and developmental issues which the defense argued were left untreated.
“After spending months and months listening, and hearing testimonies, and looking at the murderer – his composure – I believe justice was not done,” said Anne Ramsay, the mother of a senior student who was killed by Cruz in the shooting. “The wrong verdict was given out today.”
Tony
Montalto, who lost his daughter Gina in the shooting, and is the president of the advocacy group Stand with Parkland, called the ruling
“yet another gut punch for so many of us who devastatingly lost our loved ones on that tragic Valentine’s Day at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.”“Seventeen beautiful lives were cut short, by murder, and the monster that killed them gets to live to see another day,” Montalto said in a statement. “While this sentence fails to punish the perpetrator to the fullest extent of the law – it will not stop our mission to effect positive change at a federal, state and local level to prevent school shooting tragedies from shattering other American families.”
