Topline
The Florida judge overseeing the upcoming trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz decided Monday afternoon to remove an entire 60-member panel of potential jurors after several emotional outbursts during jury selection, according to multiple reports, as efforts to assemble a jury in the case have proven extremely difficult.
Nikolas Cruz looks down during a hearing on April 27, 2018 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (Photo by … [+]
Key Facts
Judge Elizabeth Scherer said Monday the panel was tainted after eight members had to be taken out of the courtroom over their reactions to learning they might be placed on Cruz’s case, according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Emotional outbursts have reportedly been a common problem since jury selection started a week ago.
The sheer expected length of the trial has also been a big issue that has led to many potential jurors being excused—lawyers on both sides say proceedings will last between four and six months.
The trial will solely focus on whether Cruz will receive the death penalty, since he’s already pleaded guilty to 17 counts of first-degree murder.
Cruz reacted by looking down and turning his head away from potential jurors who had emotional reactions, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
What To Watch For
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Cruz, 23, after rejecting a proposal from Cruz’s lawyers to take the punishment off the table when he decided to plead guilty. The state will argue “aggravating” factors in the penalty phase trial, while the defense will argue for “mitigating” factors, such as signs of remorse. Cruz will at a minimum spend the rest of his life in prison.
Key Background
Cruz used an AR-15 rifle to kill 14 students and three staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on February 14, 2018. The massacre shocked the American public and sparked a massive movement calling for gun reform, led by survivors and the families of the victims. An estimated 2 million people took to the streets across the U.S. a month after the Parkland shooting in the March for Our Lives protests, which demanded stricter gun control across the United States.
Tangent
President Joe Biden on Monday announced a new rule to crack down on so-called “ghost guns,” which are firearms assembled at home using parts that can be purchased online without a background check and can be untraceable since they lack serial numbers. “If you buy a couch you have to assemble, it’s still a couch,” Biden said.
Further Reading
Entire panel of jurors released when 8 distraught people balk at deciding fate of confessed Parkland killer (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
Biden Will Announce ‘Ghost Gun’ Crackdown (Forbes)
Parkland Massacre Shooter Nikolas Cruz Pleads Guilty—But Could Still Get Death Penalty (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2022/04/11/court-struggles-to-assemble-jury-in-death-penalty-trial-for-parkland-shooter/