Attorney for Parkland school shooting suspect says he will plead guilty

Attorneys for Parkland school shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz told a circuit judge Friday that Cruz intends to plead guilty to the murder of 17 people on Valentine’s Day in 2018. The video above shows the attorney making the announcement in court. The guilty plea is expected to come during a hearing next Wednesday.

While the anticipated guilty plea will allow Cruz to avoid a jury trial to determine guilt, there will still be a jury trial to determine whether or not he will get the death penalty over the Parkland shooting. The date for that trial has not been set yet. Defense attorneys for Cruz have offered guilty pleas in the Parkland shooting in exchange for a life sentence. Prosecutors had repeatedly rejected that deal, saying Cruz deserves a death sentence.

Preparations were set to begin for jury selection within the next few months. Despite the case being over three years old, it has run into delays. These delays were primarily due to the pandemic, as well as arguments between the prosecution and defense over what evidence and testimony could be presented to the jury.

Some victims’ families had expressed frustration over the delays. The president of Stand With Parkland, a group formed by the families after the shooting, expressed relief after Friday’s announcement of future guilty pleas.

“We just hope the system gives him justice,” Tony Montalto said.

Cruz was not present in the courtroom when his lawyers made the announcement. However, he later appeared to plead guilty to attacking a jail guard nine months after the shooting. The video above also shows him pleading. A trial for those charges was set to begin on Monday.

The shooting sparked a nationwide movement for gun control. Following the shooting, Parkland student activists formed March for Our Lives, a group that rallied hundreds of thousands around the country for tighter gun laws. This included a nationally televised march in Washington, D.C. Parents also made impassioned pleas for accountability and policies aimed at halting gun violence.