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Scot Peterson was on duty as a school resource officer when a
gunman entered a building in Feb. 14, 2018 and opened fire,
killing 17 and wounding another 17. Peterson never went inside
while the shooting was underway, according to the Broward County
Sheriff's Office and surveillance video.
Peterson, 60, was charged in 2019 with 11 criminal charges of
child neglect, culpable negligence and perjury, carrying a
combined maximum prison sentence of nearly 97 years.
It is highly unusual for law enforcement officers to be charged
with failing to take action or provide care, raising the
possibility that Peterson's trial will set legal precedents.
Legal experts have said Peterson's defense has a strong case.
The neglect law he is accused of breaking is normally used to
prosecute caregivers such as daycare providers and parents, not
law enforcement officers.
A jury in October spared Nikolas Cruz, the gunman in the
Parkland shooting, from the death penalty, instead calling for
life in prison without possibility of parole.
In May, the United States marked the one-year anniversary of the
deadliest U.S. school shooting in nearly a decade, in which a
gunman in Uvalde, Texas killed 19 children and two teachers and
injured 17 others.
Police waited more than an hour to enter and confront the
shooter in that case, prompting widespread criticism.
A report by the Texas Department of Public Safety found an
Uvalde police officer could have shot the gunman before he
entered the school but hesitated while awaiting permission from
a supervisor.
(Reporting by Julia Harte; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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