Florida - The Florida House on Wednesday issued subpoenas requesting information from five South Florida government agencies, including Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel’s office, as lawmakers seek answers about events leading up to the mass shooting this month of fourteen students and three faculty members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
Nikolas Cruz, 19, a former student at the Broward County school, is charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder after confessing to using a semiautomatic rifle in the Feb. 14 shooting spree.
House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, and other Republicans demanded that Israel resign or be suspended from office after it was revealed that deputy Scot Peterson, the school’s resource officer, did not enter the school during the shooting.
The House approved subpoenas for information from Israel’s office, the Broward County School Board, Broward County government, the Coral Springs Police Department and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. The subpoenas seek information related to the agencies’ policies and interactions with Cruz, who had a troubled history and was reported to the FBI at least twice for posing a threat before the shooting. The subpoenas also seek information about responses to the massacre. House Public Integrity and Ethics Chairman Larry Metz, R-Yalaha, said he wants responses to the requests by Tuesday.
The House expects to use the information in an investigation of the circumstances surrounding the shooting.
Photo courtesy Kapustin Igor and Shutterstock.com.
