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Florida school gunman due in court, charged with murder
Florida school gunman
February 15, 2018 | 05:58 PM
A 19-year-old man who had been expelled from his Florida high school was due in court on Thursday, charged with 17 counts of murder, after authorities say he opened fire at the school, unleashing one of the deadliest school shootings in US history.
The ex-student, identified as Nikolas Cruz, 19, walked into the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland on Wednesday and opened fire on students and teachers, Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel said. Police believe he acted alone.Cruz was expected to appear in court on Thursday afternoon for a bond hearing, faced with 17 counts of premeditated murder, said Constance Simmons, a spokeswoman for the state attorney's office.Cruz was armed with an AR-15-style rifle and had multiple ammunition magazines when he surrendered to officers in a nearby residential area, police said. He loved guns and was expelled for unspecified disciplinary reasons, police and former classmates said.The shooting in a community about 45 miles (72 km) north of Miami was the 18th in a US school this year, according to gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety, continuing a troubling pattern that has played out over the past few years.It was the second-deadliest shooting in a US public elementary or high school after the 2012 massacre of 20 first-graders and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut.The deadliest school shooting in US history was at Virginia Tech in 2007, when 32 people were killed.The Florida shooting stirred the long-simmering US debate on the right to bear arms, which are protected by the Second Amendment of the US Constitution.Schools across the country have installed electronically secured doors and added security staff, but few legislative solutions have emerged."So many signs that the Florida shooter was mentally disturbed, even expelled from school for bad and erratic behavior," US President Donald Trump said on Twitter on Thursday. "Neighbours and classmates knew he was a big problem. Must always report such instances to authorities, again and again!"Trump, who ordered flags to fly at half-staff in a sign of mourning, plans to address the nation from the White House at 11 am EST, a spokeswoman said.
February 15, 2018 | 05:58 PM