Latest Parkland verdict: Juror ‘threatened’ during Nikolas Cruz sentencing

Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jaime died in the Parkland school shooting, delivered a powerful speech after Thursday’s verdict.

Mr Guttenberg said the first thing he would do after sentencing was to visit his daughter’s grave, before pouring all his energy into trying to prevent future tragedies.

“The next thing I do moving forward is do whatever I can to remind people how important the upcoming election is and voting.

“Because we have the ability to do things in our country to reduce gun violence through our vote.”

The British mother of a student killed in the Parkland shooting shared her outrage at Thursday’s verdict at a news conference shortly after it was announced.

Anne Ramsay, whose daughter Helena was among more than a dozen people killed in the 2018 Florida massacre, said she felt “disappointed” by the jury in an emotional speech after the verdict.

“Today I think justice has not been served,” she said.

Helena, who was born in England but moved to the United States as a child, was only 17 when she died trying to protect a friend when Cruz opened fire in their classroom.

The Independents Zoe Tidman has more:

“What a load of bullshit. There were no mitigating circumstances,” Ilan Alhadeff said after a jury recommended a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

“He’s not a human being. It’s an animal.

Reverend Sharon Risher, whose mother and cousins ​​were among the victims of a mass shooting at Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston in 2015, posted a moving statement after Parkland’s verdict.

Reverend Risher said that because of the death penalty verdict in this case, “we are still suffering in a way that could have been avoided” due to ongoing appeals.

“Rather than helping us heal, it just keeps reopening our wounds.”

She then expressed hope that the families could “move towards healing” in a statement released by Death Penalty Action.

“We can never get our loved ones back, but without a death sentence hanging over us, we can remember our loved ones for who they were before the horrific outbreak of gun violence touched their lives.”

A day after Nikolas Cruz was spared the death penalty, we learn more about the tensions between the jury members during their deliberations.

A juror has alleged in court that she was threatened by another juror – and prosecutors have asked Judge Elizabeth Scherer to investigate.

“Juror X spoke to a member of the support staff and informed the member of the support staff that during deliberations she had received what she perceived as a threat from another juror while ‘She was in the jury room,’ State said in a filing obtained by CNN.

“The State did not recall Juror X and instead filed a notice with the Court.”

Read on for more details.

A juror who saved Nikolas Cruz from the death penalty has denied claims by the panel of jurors that she “already decided to vote for life before the trial began”.

Graeme Massie has the story.

The British mother of a student killed in the Parkland shooting shared her outrage at Thursday’s verdict at a news conference shortly after it was announced.

Anne Ramsay, whose daughter Helena was among more than a dozen people killed in the 2018 Florida massacre, said she felt “disappointed” by the jury in an emotional speech after the verdict.

“Today I think justice has not been served,” she said.

Helena, who was born in England but moved to the United States as a child, was only 17 when she died trying to protect a friend when Cruz opened fire in their classroom.

The Independents Zoe Tidman has more:

Prosecutors who sought the death penalty for Nikolas Cruz alleged that one of the jurors felt threatened by another panel member during deliberation.

The state filed a motion shortly after Thursday’s verdict asking Judge Elizabeth Scherer to compel authorities to question the juror, who has not been named.

“Juror X spoke to a support staff member and informed the support staff member that during deliberations she had received what she perceived as a threat from a fellow juror while ‘She was in the jury room,’ the filing, obtained by CNN.

The record does not indicate how the juror voted in recommending the final sentence or any additional circumstances surrounding the perceived threat.

The deliberation process came under scrutiny almost immediately after the verdict was announced, with the father of one of the Parkland shooting victims, Ryan Petty, saying it was a single vote.

Jury foreman Benjamin Thomas later said CBSMiami that there was a “recalcitrant” juror against the death penalty from the start of the deliberations. Two other people then joined that juror to vote for a life sentence without parole, Mr Thomas said.

As families of the victims shared their outrage at the verdict, survivors of the 2018 massacre took to Twitter to demand the demolition of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, which has since stood vacant.

Gustaf Kilander has the whole story.

“What a load of bullshit. There were no mitigating circumstances,” Ilan Alhadeff said after a jury recommended a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

“He’s not a human being. It’s an animal.