FILE – In this Aug. 15, 2018 file photo, Florida school shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz listens during a status check on his case at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Cruz is due back in court for a status hearing on his death penalty case. The hearing is set Thursday afternoon, Feb. 21, 2019, in Broward County Circuit Court. Cruz, 20, is accused of killing 17 people and wounding 17 others in last year’s massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. (Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP, Pool, File)
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Attorneys for the suspect in last year’s Florida high school massacre want to waive his attendance at pretrial hearings.
Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer said in court documents she will question Nikolas Cruz at a hearing Friday. She said if he “knowingly, voluntarily and intelligently” waives his appearance, she will allow it.
Cruz’s attorneys argue that his presence draws television coverage that emotionally damages survivors of the Feb. 14, 2018, attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School that left 17 dead. They say prosecutors should accept their proposed deal that would see Cruz plead guilty for a life sentence without parole so the case can be concluded.
Prosecutors have declined the deal and are seeking a death sentence.
Trial for the 20-year-old Cruz is scheduled for early next year.
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