NIKOLAS CRUZ

Tamara Curtis, one of Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz's lawyers, is facing an investigation by the Florida Bar after she was seen flipping off cameras.

ORLANDO, Fla. — The man investigators said shot and killed someone outside of his Orange County home said the victim was trying to steal his birds. It happened off Ponderosa Drive near Orlando International Airport. Deputies first arrived on the scene early Thursday morning around 4 a.m. when they put crime scene tape around the home after finding a man lying on the ground by a chicken group. READ: 1 dead, 1 injured after shooting near Orange County shopping plazaBy the time they arrived, investigators said Enrique Benavides Montero was already lying dead on the ground. The homeowner told investigators he left the gun inside the home, unloaded.

Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz has been formally sentenced to life in prison without parole. Before Cruz was sentenced, parents and other relatives of Cruz's victims spent two days telling him of their anger and hate toward him. (Nov. 2)

Families of victims who were killed in the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting at a Parkland, Florida, high school confronted shooter Nikolas Cruz for the last time.

Amy Beth Bennett/Sun Sentinel/Tribune News Service via GettyIn the final hours of the two-day sentencing hearing for Nikolas Cruz, the gunman who killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, the family members of some of his victims fiercely confronted not only him, but also his defense team.Cruz’s attorneys locked horns with Judge Elizabeth Scherer frequently before, during, and after a nearly four-week death penalty trial, crescendoing in an explosive exchange on Tuesday that saw

The gunman was given life in prison on Wednesday, after two days of victim statements from anguished families and survivors.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States Department of Homeland Security is raising the alarm about the concerns they have about unprecedented threats to the midterm elections. With six days left before midterm election day, candidates are pumping out messages and social media campaigns at a blistering pace. “You have those horrible physical security concerns that are at an unprecedented level.”Election officials work year-round to administer and secure our elections. Learn more about the safeguards they use and find links to useful sources on our Election Security Rumor vs. “I think what they’re doing is exploiting existing divisions in our society, and they’re very good at that,” Painter said.

Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz received multiples life sentences in prison from a judge after a jury declined to recommend the death penalty.

Nikolas Cruz received 17 consecutive life terms for the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

A judge in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., sentenced Nikolas Cruz to life in prison without the possibility of parole for killing 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018.

After a jury recommended the sentence, the judge could not change it. But she did allow victims and families to speak directly to Nikolas Cruz for the first time to express their anger and grief.

Cruz acknowledged under questioning by the judge before sentencing that he is on medication but could understand what was occurring. Linda Beigel Schulman, mother of teacher Scott Beigel, spoke of vengeance when she got her turn to confront Cruz. Cruz was convicted of the Valentine's Day 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Beigel Schulman said she takes some comfort in knowing that Cruz is headed to a maximum-security prison where he will have to worry constantly about his safety for the rest of his life. “From what I hear, child killers are highly frowned upon and hated in prison,” Beigel Schulman said to Cruz.

Cruz acknowledged under questioning by the judge before sentencing that he is on medication but could understand what was occurring. Linda Beigel Schulman, mother of teacher Scott Beigel, spoke of vengeance when she got her turn to confront Cruz. Cruz was convicted of the Valentine's Day 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Beigel Schulman said she takes some comfort in knowing that Cruz is headed to a maximum-security prison where he will have to worry constantly about his safety for the rest of his life. “From what I hear, child killers are highly frowned upon and hated in prison,” Beigel Schulman said to Cruz.

Linda Beigel Schulman, mother of teacher Scott Beigel, spoke of vengeance when she got her turn to confront Cruz. “That’s real justice for you.”Cruz, shackled and wearing a red jail jumpsuit, stared at the speakers but showed little emotion, as he did the day before. Cruz was convicted of the Valentine's Day 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Beigel Schulman said she takes some comfort in knowing that Cruz is headed to a maximum-security prison where he will have to worry constantly about his safety for the rest of his life. “From what I hear, child killers are highly frowned upon and hated in prison,” Beigel Schulman said to Cruz.

“Just to be in the same room as this monster who killed our son Nicholas and attempted to murder our son Alex. Cruz, shackled and wearing a red jail jumpsuit, stared at the speakers but showed little emotion, as he did the day before. Cruz was convicted of the Valentine's Day 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in suburban Fort Lauderdale. “You deserve the opportunity to rot away,” David Alhadeff, the uncle of Alyssa Alhadeff, told Cruz via Zoom from his classroom in Maryland. “You deserve the opportunity to absorb the look of terror on your face once you leave this courtroom.

Cruz was convicted of the Valentine's Day 2018 massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in suburban Fort Lauderdale. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer has no choice but to impose that sentence, as the jury in Cruz's penalty trial could not unanimously agree that he deserved the death penalty. “To go from a younger brother to an only child ... is a dramatic change for anyone,” he said. The Navy veteran fell wounded on the floor and tried to take cover in an alcove, but Cruz walked over and shot him again. Thomas Hixon, a Marine veteran, recalled Cruz claiming remorse a year ago when he pleaded guilty to the murders, setting the stage for the penalty trial.

>> Read more trending newsThe sentence follows a recommendation last month from a jury that determined Nikolas Cruz should not be sentenced to death. Relatives of those injured and killed in the Feb. 14, 2018, Parkland shooting shared grief and anger Tuesday while reading victim impact statements in court. Most also questioned the jury’s decision not to sentence Cruz to death. He shot Joaquin Oliver again, killing him. In total, prosecutors said Cruz shot Joaquin Oliver four times.

Families of the 17 children and staff members Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz murdered have concluded their first day of confronting him in court.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — (AP) — Parents, wives, children and siblings of the 17 people murdered by Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz finally got their chance after almost five years to verbally thrash him face-to-face — and those who accepted the opportunity didn’t waste it. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer has no choice but to impose that sentence as the jury in Cruz’s penalty trial could not unanimously agree that he deserved the death penalty. Many also criticized a Florida law that requires jury unanimity for a death sentence to be imposed — Cruz’s jurors voted 9-3 on Oct. 13 for his execution. He said he felt a pain in his chest — he believes it was a sign of his sister’s death. DeSantis calls on changes to death penalty law after Parkland shooter sentencing hearing“To go from a younger brother to an only child ... is a dramatic change for anyone,” he said.

He said he felt a pain in his chest — he believes it was a sign of his sister's death. “You are pure evil,” she told Cruz. Thomas Hixon's father, athletic director Chris Hixon, was shot when he burst through a door and ran at Cruz, trying to stop him. “Where was your remorse when you saw my father injured and bleeding on the floor and decided to shoot him for a third time?” Hixon told Cruz. She assumed it was in a car crash, only finding out in a phone call he had been shot.

Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz has been formally sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Families of the 17 children and staff members that Nikolas Cruz murdered at a Parkland school have concluded their first day of confronting him.

Relatives of those killed at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018 angrily confronted the gunman at a sentencing hearing. They also expressed outrage at the jury's verdict.

“This creature has no redeemable value," said Max Schachter, whose 14-year-old son Alex died when he was shot through a classroom window. There, Cruz fatally shot her son in the head as he raised his hand to protect himself. That led to the current hearing and the raw emotions expressed by the families and surviving victims. Cruz shot him again after he fell wounded to the ground. He fatally shot some wounded victims after they fell.

“You were given a gift, a gift of grace and mercy — something you did not show to any of your victims,” Debra Hixon told Cruz. “We hope that you, the monster who did this to our son, endure a painful existence in your remaining days. Stacey Lippel, a wounded teacher, told Cruz she was “broken and altered." The families gave emotional statements during the trial but were restricted about what they could tell jurors. He apologized in court last year after pleading guilty to the murders and attempted murders, but families told reporters they found the apology aimed at garnering sympathy.

“You stole him from us, and you did not receive the justice that you deserved," Debra Hixon said. “There is no mitigating circumstance that will outweigh the heinous and cruel way you stole him from us.”Chris Hixon was wounded and fell to the floor, where Cruz shot him again. “You were given a gift, a gift of grace and mercy — something you did not show to any of your victims,” Debra Hixon told Cruz. One who will not is Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jaime was shot by Cruz in the back as she tried to flee. He apologized in court last year after pleading guilty to the murders and attempted murders — but families told reporters they found the apology self-serving and aimed at garnering sympathy.

They were barred from addressing Cruz directly or saying anything about him — a violation would have risked a mistrial. And the jurors were told they couldn’t consider the family statements as aggravating factors as they weighed whether Cruz should die. Now, the grieving and the scarred can speak directly to Cruz, if they choose. One who will not is Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jaime was shot by Cruz in the back as she tried to flee. He would thank the prosecutors and others who supported the families, but said that won't make a difference either.

She has no other option as the jury in his recently concluded penalty trial could not unanimously agree that the 24-year-old former Stoneman Douglas student deserved a death sentence. They were barred from addressing Cruz directly or saying anything about him — a violation would have risked a mistrial. DeSantis calls on changes to death penalty law after Parkland shooter sentencing hearingHis attorneys say Cruz is not expected to speak. Under Florida law, a death sentence requires unanimity. The suspect in the 2019 massacre of 23 at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is awaiting trial.

They were barred from addressing Cruz directly or saying anything about him — a violation would have risked a mistrial. And the jurors were told they couldn’t consider the family statements as aggravating factors as they weighed whether Cruz should die. Now, the grieving and the scarred can speak directly to Cruz, if they choose. Cruz said he chose Valentine’s Day so it could never again be celebrated at Stoneman Douglas. The suspect in the 2019 massacre of 23 at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is awaiting trial.

They were barred from addressing Cruz directly or saying anything about him — a violation would have risked a mistrial. And the jurors were told they couldn’t consider the family statements as aggravating factors as they weighed whether Cruz should die. Now, the grieving and the scarred can speak directly to Cruz, if they choose. Cruz said he chose Valentine’s Day so it could never again be celebrated at Stoneman Douglas. The suspect in the 2019 massacre of 23 at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is awaiting trial.

Families of the 17 children and staff members Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz murdered have concluded their first day of confronting him in court.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — (AP) — Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life in prison this week — but not before the families of the 17 people he murdered get the chance to tell him what they think. Each family of the 14 students and three staff members Cruz murdered can speak, as can the 17 people he wounded during the seven-minute attack. They were barred from addressing Cruz directly or saying anything about him — a violation would have risked a mistrial. Broward County Public Defender Gordon Weekes, whose lawyers represent Cruz, said he has no problem with the families expressing their anger directly to Cruz. McAndrew noted that because Cruz has a life sentence, he will be last in line for education and rehabilitation programs.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — (AP) — Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life in prison this week — but not before the families of the 17 people he murdered get the chance to tell him what they think. Each family of the 14 students and three staff members Cruz murdered can speak, as can the 17 people he wounded during the seven-minute attack. They were barred from addressing Cruz directly or saying anything about him — a violation would have risked a mistrial. Broward County Public Defender Gordon Weekes, whose lawyers represent Cruz, said he has no problem with the families expressing their anger directly to Cruz. McAndrew noted that because Cruz has a life sentence, he will be last in line for education and rehabilitation programs.

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life in prison this week, but not before the families of the 17 people he murdered get the chance to tell him what they think.

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life in prison this week — but not before the families of the 17 people he murdered get the chance to tell him what they think. A two-day hearing is scheduled to begin Tuesday that will conclude with Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer formally sentencing Cruz for his Feb. 14, 2018, massacre at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Because the jury at his penalty trial could not unanimously agree that the 24-year-old deserved a death sentence, Scherer can only sentence the former Stoneman Douglas student to life without parole — an outcome most of the families criticized.

The death-sentence trial of the Parkland shooter was an exercise in finding explanations where none existed.

Had Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz been sent to Florida’s Death Row, his daily life while awaiting execution would not have been easy. But he would have enjoyed certain comforts: his own cell, meals delivered three times a day, clean clothes and towels brought to him, and no requirement to work.

Nine of the 12 jurors voted to hand down the death penalty, but in Florida, a unanimous vote is required.

Backlash over the Parkland shooting penalty phase verdict is reaching the highest levels of the state.

The jury recommended life in prison for the Parkland school shooter after he confessed to killing 17 people back in 2018. Read: ‘I couldn’t find anyone to kill’: Parkland school shooter says at penalty trialThe governor said if it weren’t for a new law, Cruz would be headed for death row. During the sentencing of Cruz, the jurors couldn’t unanimously decide on death, so he will be sentenced to life in prison. Parents of Parkland victims are asking the state to make some changes to its death penalty law. Read: Parkland shooter prosecutors call for probe of juror threatThe parents’ demands are supported by DeSantis.

Ron DeSantis called on the state legislature to change Florida’s death penalty law. Read: Parkland high school shooting: Jurors recommend life sentence for Nikolas CruzFlorida law states that the jury must unanimously agree on the death penalty, or it is an automatic life sentence. Parents of Parkland victims are asking the state to change its death penalty law. Florida’s death penalty law changed in 2017, which could have led to a different fate for Cruz. A judge is expected to formally sentence Cruz on Nov. 1.

Until 2016, Florida law allowed trial judges to impose a death sentence if a majority of the jurors agreed. But now, anything less than 12-0 means an automatic sentence of life without parole.

Until 2016, Florida law allowed trial judges to impose a death sentence if a majority of the jurors agreed. “If this was not the most perfect death penalty case, then why do we have the death penalty at all?” said Linda Beigel Schulman, the mother of slain teacher Scott Beigel. The latest Gallup Poll showed 54% of Americans favor the death penalty, down from 80% in the mid-1990s. But will the Cruz sentence make Florida prosecutors less likely to seek the death penalty? Craig Trocino, a University of Miami law professor who previously handled death penalty appeals, doesn't think so.

The life sentence about to be imposed on Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz could bring changes to the state's death penalty law.

Prosecutor Carolyn McCann said during a brief hearing that they are not trying to invalidate Thursday's jury vote.

Even under that circumstance, prosecutors couldn’t retry the duo for drug trafficking, but did convict them on charges stemming from the bribery. Scherer said a bailiff told her later that one juror wanted to speak to her during Thursday's reading of the decision. When the jurors were polled, he agreed the life sentence was the panel's decision. Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote, and jurors decided there was no point in continuing deliberations. Thomas did not say whether that adamant life vote was Cunha's.

The jury foreman said the jurors were divided.

One of the jurors who rejected the death penalty and voted for Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz to have life in prison wrote a letter to the judge.

Prosecutors in the case of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz are calling for an investigation after a juror said she felt threatened by another member of the jury during deliberations.

Under Florida law, a death sentence requires a unanimous vote on at least one count. Juror Denise Cunha sent a short handwritten note to the judge Thursday defending her vote for a life sentence and denying she intended to vote that way before the trial began. “The deliberations were very tense and some jurors became extremely unhappy once I mentioned that I would vote for life,” Cunha wrote. She did not explain her vote and it is unknown if she is the juror who complained to the state attorney's office. “It really came down to a specific (juror) that he (Cruz) was mentally ill," Thomas said.

Prosecutors in the case of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz are calling for an investigation after a juror said she felt threatened by another member of the jury during deliberations that ended with a life sentence for Cruz.

Editor’s note: Daily coverage of the Parkland trial is being provided to all readers as a public service. The deliberation room where 12 jurors decided the fate of confessed mass shooter Nikolas Cruz may have been a crime scene itself — a juror says she was threatened during deliberations, and prosecutors want the claim investigated. According to a motion filed late Thursday, prosecutors want ...

University of Central Florida students impacted by the Parkland school shooting reacted to the jury verdict on Thursday.

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.

Some families of the 17 people killed in the Parkland school shooting expressed their anger, sadness and shock by the jury’s recommendation Thursday that confessed shooter Nikolas Cruz be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole instead of death, according to News 6 partner WPLG-TV.

Florida leaders expressed a mixture of emotions Thursday after a jury rejected the death penalty and recommended instead a life sentence without parole for Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz for killing 17 people in 2018.

"That you can allow 17 dead and 17 others shot and wounded and not give the death penalty? What do we have the death penalty for? What's the purpose of it?" Alhadeff said, adding that he believed the jurors set a precedent today that could affect future mass killings.

Thomas Benjamin told CBS Miami three jurors voted against the death penalty for the gunman, who was convicted of killing 17 people in 2018.

Relatives, along with the students and teachers Cruz wounded, will be given the opportunity to speak at the sentencing hearing. Cruz, his hair unkempt, largely sat hunched over and stared at the table as the jury’s recommendations were read. Cruz, 24, pleaded guilty a year ago to murdering 14 students and three staff members and wounding 17 others on Feb. 14, 2018. They never brought up Cruz's high school years or called his younger half-brother, Zachary, whom they accused of bullying. Their witnesses said Cruz faked brain damage during testing and that he was capable of controlling his actions, but chose not to.

The sentence caps an emotional three-month trial in which victim relatives and survivors recounted the 2018 Valentine’s Day massacre in painful detail.

A jury in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Thursday recommended that Nikolas Cruz be sentenced to life in prison for killing 17 people in the mass shooting at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The unanimous verdict from the 12-member jury came on the second day of deliberations. Cruz, 24, was 19 years old when he used an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle to carry out the attack at his former school. According to the Associated Press , it was the deadliest mass shooting that has ever gone to trial in the United States. The suspect in the 2019 massacre of 23 people at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, is currently awaiting trial.

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life without parole for the 2018 massacre of 17 people at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

The jurors who will decide whether Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz is sentenced to death or life without parole have begun their deliberations.

The lead prosecutor and attorney for Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz have made their closing arguments over whether he should be sentenced to death or life in prison.

As the Parkland school shooter’s death penalty phase gets closer to an end, the jury has been prepared to be isolated and away from their families in a secret location.

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz may have talked himself into a death sentence.

As he delivered his cross-examination questions Thursday, capital defense attorney Casey Secor brought up the Parkland school shooter’s alleged childhood sexual abuse.

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz calmly told a psychologist he picked Valentine’s Day for his massacre to ruin the holiday for Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students forever.

Prosecutors trying to sentence Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz are trying to show he is faking having fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.

Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz told a prosecution psychiatrist he began contemplating mass murder while in middle school.

Prosecutors in the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz are about to begin their rebuttal case.

The judge overseeing the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz has rejected a motion by his attorneys that she step down.

The judge overseeing the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz has rejected a motion by his attorneys that she step down.

Attorneys for Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz have asked for the judge in his murder case to remove herself two days after she scolded them when they abruptly rested their case.

Attorneys for Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz have suddenly and surprisingly rested their case, leading to a shouting match after the judge accused them of a lack of professionalism.

Attorneys for Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz have suddenly and surprisingly rested their case, leading to a shouting match after the judge accused them of a lack of professionalism.

One of the nation's leading researchers on the effects of fetal alcohol abuse says the birth mother of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz drank more in pregnancy than any woman he has documented.

A neuropsychologist says Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz suffered brain damage when his birth mother drank during pregnancy.

A neuropsychologist says Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz suffered brain damage when his birth mother drank during pregnancy.

Testimony at the trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz shows that chaos reigned in the home he shared with his widowed mother and brother.

A judge ruled that the jury for school shooter Nikolas Cruz can see the swastikas he drew on class assignments.

Four years before Nikolas Cruz murdered 17 people at a Florida high school, therapists at another school wrote a letter to his psychiatrist saying he was fixated on guns and dreamed of killing others and being covered in blood.

Four years before Nikolas Cruz murdered 17 people at a Florida high school, therapists at another school wrote a letter to his psychiatrist saying he was fixated on guns and dreamed of killing others and being covered in blood.

A psychologist who treated Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz when he was 8 years old testified that Cruz was a “peculiar child” who had many behavioral and developmental issues.

A preschool administrator and a neighbor both say that as a toddler, Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz was intellectually and physically behind other children.

The lead attorney for Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz told the jury in his penalty trial Monday they have witnessed “things that will haunt them for the rest of their lives,” but they now need to learn what led him to massacre of 17 people four years ago before they can decide whether he is sentenced to death or life without parole.

The lead attorney for Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz told the jury in his penalty trial Monday they have witnessed “things that will haunt them for the rest of their lives,” but they now need to learn what led him to massacre of 17 people four years ago before they can decide whether he is sentenced to death or life without parole.

Attorneys for Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz are about to present their case for why they believe he should be sentenced to life in prison and not death.

The judge in penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will soon decide whether the jury will be told about some brain exams his lawyers had conducted on him.

The prosecutor seeking to sentence Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz to death let the facts speak for themselves as he presented his case over the last three weeks.

Jurors in the trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz have toured the still-bloodstained building where he murdered 17 people four years ago.

Jurors in the trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz heard a third day of statements from families of his 17 victims.

A grieving father erupted in anger as he told jurors about the daughter school shooter Nikolas Cruz murdered along with 16 others four years ago.

Family members from three of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz’s 17 victims gave heartrending testimony about how their 2018 deaths at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School have affected their lives.

Few Americans outside law enforcement ever see the most graphic videos or photos from the nation’s worst mass shootings.

A Florida jail guard says school shooter Nikolas Cruz attacked him with little warning.

Jurors in the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz have now seen the AR-15 rifle he used to murder 17 people.

Florida law enforcement officers have told a jury about the horror they found inside a high school after 17 people were massacred there four years ago.

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist have held their first and only debate before the Democratic gubernatorial primary.

A video played at the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz shows him walking calmly into a sandwich shop just minutes after he murdered 17 people.