Kimok and prosecutors declined to comment after the hearing. “The state has been seeking to make a show of this.”Ĭruz did not speak during Tuesday’s hearing. Zachary Cruz “is being held because of who he is related to, not because of anything he did,” Kimok said. Cruz would have to raise 10 percent of the bond amount to go free as he waits for his case to be resolved.ĭefense lawyer Joseph Kimok objected to the bond amount, noting that a typical case of trespassing comes with a $25 bond. He is not to enter Broward County except for court-related business. He will not be allowed within a mile of Stoneman Douglas or within 500 feet of any school campus. If Zachary Cruz is able to post a bond, he will be fitted with an ankle monitor to track his movements, Mollica said. Deschamps was in New York to participate in a news conference, where she described her family’s hardships from living with Nikolas Cruz. Murphy said the guardian Cruz lives with in Lantana, Rocxanne Deschamps, was in New York when he was arrested Monday and had no idea how or why he went to the school. “His mother and father are deceased, his brother is incarcerated,” Murphy said.ĭuring his arrest, Zachary Cruz gave authorities an address where used to live in Parkland. In court Tuesday, Murphy told Broward County Judge Kim Mollica that it would be irresponsible to treat the new case as a typical trespassing infraction. Murphy said there has been a discussion about starting a pen pal or fan club and the fact that Nikolas Cruz is capable of attracting a lot of girls. “That his face is everywhere and his name is national.” “He has been heard and observed discussing how popular his brother is now,” she said. Since his arrest Monday, Zachary Cruz has had contact in jail with his brother, Murphy said. “It’s weird and suspicious, but I don’t think he would do anything,” he said. Cruz’s showing up “frightens everyone,” given how depressed he might be, he said. “Just weird.”Ĭonner Gandy, 17, a senior, said Zachary Cruz should have at least warned people before he visited the school. “That’s crazy,” said Josef Bagiv, 16, a junior. Others said it’s frightening that Zachary Cruz admitted trespassing on the school campus three times since the massacre. “I’m not worried about the Cruz family, ” said Chris Donnelly, 17, a junior. Zachary Cruz, 18, was booked into the Broward Main Jail Monday, the same jail where his older brother is locked up.Īt least one student at the school Tuesday said he thought the bail amount was excessive. The rule generally requires that a felony defendant go to trial within 175 days of arrest unless it's waived.Ĭruz, 19, is charged with 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the Februschool shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fl.Ĭruz's attorney has said he would plead guilty if guaranteed life without parole, but prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. The hearing is expected to deal with several procedural issues possibly including setting an initial trial date and Cruz's public defender possibly ask to waive Florida's speedy trial rule. Standing to the left of Cruz is his attorney Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill. The FBI has also apologized for failing to act on a tip last month from a person who was concerned that Nikolas Cruz could shoot up a school.Florida school shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz walks back in court in front of The Broward County Public Defender's office urged Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer for a hearing to move forward the death penalty case Friday afternoon, April 27, 2018, in Fort Lauderdale, Fl. He cut his arms in a Snapchat post and had "plans to go out and buy a gun," the investigator noted at the time.ĭCF closed the investigation six weeks later, saying the agency found no evidence of mistreatment. The investigator noted Nikolas Cruz had depression, ADHD and autism. Documents show that in September 2016 an investigator with Florida's Department of Children and Families (DCF) visited the family to investigate allegations of medical neglect. The investigation into the shooting revealed that there were several missed warning signs. Zachary wishes that he had been 'nicer' to his brother" and that there may be resentment between the two "as Nikolas may have been the favored brother." refuses to follow house rules."Īfter the shooting, according to a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office report, Zachary told deputies that "he and his friends, when they were younger, had bullied Nikolas, which he now regrets ever doing. Earlier, in August 2012, sheriff's deputies reported that Lynda Cruz told them Zachary "is rude and always runs away from home.
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