Jury Rejects Death Penalty for Parkland School Shooter, Who Gets Sentenced to Life Without Parole

Mar. 15, 2025

A jury has sentenced theParkland, Fla., school shooter to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the 2018 massacre that killed 18 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

The shooter, Nikolas Cruz, 23,pleaded guiltylast October to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting. During his sentencing trial, which began in July, prosecutors had sought the death the death penalty while defense attorneys asked for life in prison.

Fourteen students and three staff members were killed attack, which then-Florida Gov. Rick Scott described as an act of “absolutely pure evil.”

The school shooting became a catalyst for efforts to curb gun violence. Just five weeks after the massacre, a coalition that began with student survivors of the Parkland shooting staged theMarch for Our Lives rallyin Washington D.C., then launched a cross-country caravan to engage local communities in an effort to change gun laws.

Among the memorable moments from that rally, studentEmma Gonzalez, who became one of Parkland’s most prominent voices after the shooting,stood silentfor most of her time on stage as a timer counted the 6 minutes and 20 seconds it took the gunman to complete his carnage.

Emma Gonzalez, center, and other youth activists against gun violence.Us Kids documentary

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According toThe Washington Post, some family members of victims left the courtroom while the recordings played. One woman pleaded for the video to be shut off, theSouth Florida Sun-Sentinelreported.

“We were just sitting — kind of like sitting ducks,” Gilbert, who took the stand, said of the massacre. “We had no way to protect ourselves.”

The fatal victims of the attack were Luke Hoyer, 15; Alyssa Alhadeff, 14; Aaron Feis, 37; Jaime Guttenberg, 14; Martin Duque, 14; Chris Hixon, 49; Scott Beigel, 35; Nicholas Dworet, 17; Joaquin Oliver, 17; Cara Loughran, 14; Peter Wang, 15; Gina Montalto, 14; Carmen Schentrup, 16; Alaina Petty, 14; Meadow Pollack, 18; Alex Schachter, 14, and Helena Ramsey, 17. All died from fatal gunshot wounds.

17 others were injured in the shooting.

source: people.com