The trial of Cruz will thus move to a new phase, in which the 23-year-old shooter will now strive to avoid the death penalty and leave only a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
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Cruz admits his guilt without any further conditions and the prosecution will continue to demand a death sentence for him. However, his sentence will be decided by a jury in a trial that has not yet been scheduled to begin.
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The shooter also confesses to 17 more attempted murders and assault of a guard in prison, which took place about nine months after his arrest.
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The trial with Cruz has been significantly delayed due to the covid-19 pandemic and also due to disputes between the prosecution and the defense over what evidence can be presented to the jury.
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Therefore, frustrations began to grow among many survivors that the case would not be resolved even after more than three years, writes AP. However, Friday’s announcement shifted the case significantly.
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The lifetime of the prosecutor’s office is not enough
Cruz’s decision to plead guilty was unexpected, as the case was expected to go to court. The jury selection was due to begin in the next few months, and Cruz was also due to appear in court next week over an attack on a prison guard.
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The shooter and his lawyers had previously offered to plead guilty in exchange for life, but the prosecutor’s office denied that an act of this format deserves the death penalty.
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Cruz has long been a problem student who has often changed schools. He was expelled from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where he later attacked, about a year before the incident.
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At the same time, the local leadership forbade him to carry a backpack for a time while he was attending school for fear of bringing a weapon into the building.
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After being expelled from school, Cruz began posting social media photos of guns and videos threatening violence.
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Just a few months before the Cruz massacre, some of his friends contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about fears that it might harm someone. However, investigators did not start investigating him.
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Cruz attacked Valentine’s Day with a semi-automatic AR-15 rifle, then dropped his weapon and mingled with the fleeing students. The police arrested him about an hour later, and he confessed to the crime that evening.
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The incident shook the United States and intensified the arms control debate.
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However, as in many previous similar cases, they have not led to concrete action at the federal level, mainly due to Republicans’ opposition to the right to possess a weapon being broadly protected by the US Constitution.
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