Jury to Decide Fate of Deputy Who Did Not Confront Parkland Gunman
A Florida jury will soon decide if a former police officer should be convicted of crimes for failing to confront the gunman who killed 17 people and wounded 17 others at a Parkland high school five years ago.
The trial, which includes charges of child neglect, is thought to be the first in the nation against a member of law enforcement for inaction in a school shooting.
During closing arguments on Monday, prosecutors asked jurors to hold Scot Peterson, a 60-year-old former sheriff’s deputy, accountable for standing by during the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, when he was the school’s only armed resource officer.
“Every student and every teacher on the third floor was still alive” when Mr. Peterson reached the building being targeted by the gunman, said Kristen Gomes, an assistant state attorney for Broward County. “And Scot Peterson chose to run.”
Source: The New York Times
