Parkland School Shooter's Defense Presents Opening Statement
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- Опубликовано: 21 авг 2022
- Melisa McNeill, a defense attorney for the Parkland school shooter, presented the defense's opening statement in court Monday.
#Parkland #LawAndCrime
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Развлечения
The people criticizing this attorney don't understand that the single best thing for a prosecutor is a good defense attorney who makes sure their client gets a fair trial and, in the case here, sentencing. Cruz is entitled to a defense. His attorney did an excellent job. Don't conflate your hatred of Cruz and his crimes with his lawyers' obligations.
Well said....but minds are made up
She was excellent.
Yeah she's just a good attorney
So well said. Thank you.
Exactly. Well said
The amount of people coughing and the frequency almost seems deliberate.
Yep. Good.
Right
I don't know how the parents can just sit there. Imagine hearing how your child was shot 13x or having their head practically blown off, but only held together by their forehead and scalp.
Exactly. Don't let the jurors get caught up in this little fantasy story.
Why would anybody hate on this lady? If she doesn't even attempt to put forth a real defense he'll get the whole thing overturned.
Exactly!!! If she did her job poorly, he could walk away and that's definitely not what anyone wants, even her I'm sure.
I agree. It's her job. But she doesn't have to sap it on like he had some kind of life that's TOTALLY different from anyone else. She could focus less on his mom and upbringing, and more so and good choices he made. Surely, he did some right choices in his life. I mean, he made it thus far?
Play on his humanity as a person, and less on his absence of ability. The way she is choosing to go is weak at best.
Because those people aren't capable of nuanced and complex thinking. They can only feel, and base their perceptions on the ideas that someone is either entirely bad or entirely good; nothing exists in the massive grey area between them. They tend to lash out whenever someone challenges them to examine this grey area because it hurts their little brains.
EVERYONE has disabilities of some sort. To use them as an excuse for such evil is . . . Evil.
@@dmurph1320 I don't think she's trying to use them as an excuse, but she has to use SOMETHING to try to get the jury to sympathize even just a little with him because they have nothing else. Can't say this was an accident, or that it was because he was defending himself against a bully, or that he was otherwise a good person because there's literally nothing there
The parents can’t hide their distaste for the defence writing a story of hardship for Cruz.
Nor should they have to. I agree with you. I couldn't sit there if he had done that to mine.
Yes, Joaquín Oliver's sister can't hide her desdain towards "poor Nikolas Cruz".
Shame on you. Her murdered their kids. report back when you know how it feels.
I'm impressed by this defense lawyer, she's doing her job well and she spoke the truth too. And that doesn't mean I'm on the defenses side whatsoever.
What truth she spoke?
She's a defense lawyer and lying a lot. She's a professional liar who earns her livelihood by lying.
@Ayhan
Knowingly lying to the jury would be an ethics violation.
Just because someone's an attorney, that doesn't mean they're constantly lying.
She did do an amazing job. There is no excuse for what he did and what he did is tragic. That being said, I feel bad for him too, he was doomed before he was born because vital information wasn't passed along to get the proper help that he needed. He was failed far too much by far too many people it sounds like. I know it's easy to say that now that hindsight is 20/20 but hopefully this will help other families if they are in similar situations to not be ashamed and let all information be known so the right help can be applied.
Also, God be with him and also the families of the victims of his crimes.
@@WhitneyBrock88 I agree. Don’t mean I think he should get a free ride. I honestly think the death penalty would be way to easy. He actually needs to live his life in a cage.
That said he didn’t have a chance in h-// at any kind of life. Mentally, emotionally, nor to function normal.
Yes she never seemed to lie
A hand full of you clearly don’t understand job roles in the court of law. Regardless how heinous a crime is, a defense attorney still has a job to do like anyone else. I’m sure she doesn’t go home and celebrate of this case , you can tell she isn’t the most comfortable in the word about it…but she’s a great attorney.
She succeeded in her job. She got her client the best possible outcome in this case.
@@elessartelcontar9415 yep that’s their job lol. Yet if you ever needed council in a situation i doubt you’d hate them then.
the defense was morally indefensible
I think miss McNeil is fantastic at fighting for her clients and advocating for them. It seems this case was particularly important to her. She cried and looked so relieved when the life instead of death verdict was handed down.
bro i cant believe anyone cared about this monster of a killer
Seems like she's thinking about it as more a victory for her not for the shooter.
In all fairness she is doing her job as a defense attorney but this doesn’t at all excuse his actions whom ever to be blamed.
wdym whomever to be blamed. it's him. we just need to open our eyes and see where to place our feelings correctly.
@@yumyummarbles No no I completely understand he is to blame, i’m not at all disregarding that or disagreeing I say that in the sense that the defense attorney tries to disperse the blame amongst other people than the sick individual himself. Sorry if I caused some misunderstanding, again to reiterate I do not at all disagree with you.
Like the judge said in the Rod Ferrell Case, to Rod - "A troubled and disturbed youth cannot serve to be an excuse for cold, calculated, premediated MURDER."
Excuses are exactly what the defense are required to *create* in this case. The attorney said it right at the beginning of her opening statement.
But a brain damaged person, birthed drug addicted pregnant mother can be...
Not defending him at all but he's not just a troubled disturbed youth. His mother drank every single day and smoked crack every single day while pregnant with him. Not to mention whatever the father's history is. In other trials it has been proven that alcohol poisons the womb. Imagine all day every day for 9 months of alcohol and Crack. Then a couple wks before she'd give birth she'd go to detox so the babies she bore didn't show any signs of withdrawals. Imagine what the withdrawals 2 wks before birth did to the baby and the drugs she was given at detox... again not defending his actions because he knew what he was doing but he was born poisoned and he didn't ask for that. No baby would.
@@babygirl79114 Well, no baby asks to be Aborted. It was his mom's Right to Choose. She had a right to drink, drug and smoke while pregnant with him. As far Nikolas Cruz is concerned, that's was his own tough luck. it was his Mom's Right to Choose. She choose not abort him but to poison him.
Now he wants to look up and stop doodling because it's all about him. He did not care one bit about the victims and their families. He's pathetic. I couldn't imagine having to defend such a thing.
Some people have perceived my comment as me saying that he doesn't deserve a defense. Very simply put, what I'm saying is: as an individual, I cannot imagine having to defend him. When I said "thing" I was referring to the defendant as a thing. Also.. It wouldn't be due process if he didn't have a defense.
Ikr 🙄 he’s so disgusting
Exactly. This will hurt his case tremendously. It almost seems like a narcissistic type of behavior. What could've been interpreted as a sign of being generally out and trying to cope with what he done, now seems to be a sign of total disrespect. As a juror, if I would've been unsure before, right now I would probably vote for the death penalty.
I mean, unless you want the whole thing overturned, he needs some kind of defense. Our justice system was set up to make it as rare as possible for innocent people to be convicted. Cruz’s admission of guilt doesn’t revoke his constitutional right to defense.
I wonder if he knew his mother was a drug addict and maybe that’s why he was so into it..because he definitely was paying attetion.
That’s literally the job of the defense though. In a case of this caliber, there is no excusing or defending what he did. But fair trial applies to everyone.
I understand that she is just doing her job and that Cruz had a rough start in life, but none of what she said makes him any less culpable or responsible for the massacre he carried out. His actions were well planned out, calculated, and carried out with FULL awareness of what he was doing. He got a sick satisfaction from what he did and the pain he caused.
And he hasn't shown any emotion, just inside feeding on the pain still
If that was the case it wouldn't be that people who do these kind of things are usually very damaged traumatized people.
It is scientifically proven that drug use when pregnant causes permanent brain damage for the child.
Said at the very beginning that he is responsible. However I also think that the system failed both the children who were killed, their families and him. Its just too easy to think of people in terms of good and evil. Then we don't have to consider anything too complexed. You have to put things like this into a wider social context. A mentally ill teenagers was able to walk into a shop and buy a gun. On what planet is that responsible!!
Do you have any medical training? Are you a neurologist or psychiatrist ? How can you listen to the defence and write what you did? Thank God you were not on the jury.
Not a big fan of the death penalty, but in cases like this where the convicted will never be free and is 100% guilty then why would you not put that person to death? Did he give the 17 people he put to death any chance to explain why they want to live?
And what punishment can we give the FBI, who are very complicit in this tragedy? Does $127.5 million really absolve them of their neglect? This incident should never have happened.
@@lumpstersmouse5471 wtf are you blabbering about dude
@@jessiegonzo6966 cruz was on fbi watch list
Not saying that death might be the right decision, but a good reason for it not being the right one is that we still don’t understand what consciousness itself is. Meaning, we don’t even know what we are doing to them, and wether or not it’s actually beneficial in any way. Just a thought.
Same reason we don't hang ppl in the town square anymore.
Not all damaged people hurt other people. You have a choice.
They don't always have the tools or capacity. That's why we as a society need to learn and recognize this earlier.
People with fetal alcohol syndrome cannot think for themselves, they just react, and usually it's negative.
Exactly. It’s like he has the brain and comprehension of a 1 year old. His brain is not normal. Not even close.
You need help yourself
Public stoning is what i suggested
Idk. Maybe chop him up into tiny pieces, starting with his toes. Keep him awake the whole time. Let everyone slice off a little bit until his body is hog slop.
Same to the CIA agents who told him to do it too🤣😂🤣😂
That would be satisfying
I'd feel bad for the rocks
Death penalty!
IS EVERYONE COUGHING WEARING A FKN MIC? Holy crap
Think there's something going around in that court room....
It's a nerve thing
It’s called “Disgustitis” and “Rage/BS Cough” lol I don’t blame them.
That demon doesn’t have a defense.
🙄
Chair 🪑
Thank god for a court system where people get a fair trial. You did not even listen to the defences argument.
Somebody who literally had no chance from the day he was conceived. In this case, I agree he needs to be locked away for public safety, but I think he was ruined from the start. His entire life history proves that.
His birth story is only relevant to the point of his mother caused him to have some delays, that doesn’t give him a free pass to kill people. He was afforded a very privileged life compared to his sister Danielle. She is the one that suffered her mother’s addictions and neglect. I feel bad for her,but not for him.
I don't feel bad for him at all. I know people personally who've had it worse than him, but you know what they did? They sucked it up and went on to become law abiding, decent human beings. They never played victim or blamed anyone else for what they went through.
Did you hear the entire opening statement? His mother took large doses of drugs and alcohol while pregnant and The effects of drugs and alcohol arent only about delays but most importantly behavioral and personality disorders and irreversible brain damage. The negative imprint he got from his mother while just a fetus, he’s carrying that until now. His mother failed him, his adoptive mother failed to help him and the society and system failed to help him.
It is clearly not a free pass. But I think the serious expressions of the victims' relatives will tell everyone, that the life story of Nikolas is absolutely devastating. He was let down by so many people and by so many things and it becomes inevitable that the FASD disorder had tremendous impact on his life. The prosecutor did an excellent job telling us why all of this happened. I felt like the victims' relatives understood that too, while listening. Parkland happened because the support system for kids like Nikolas doesn't work properly. The school systems are too full with kids with problems and it doesn't have the resources to help them. There is the reason everyone is looking for.
@@leonorrivera6379 agree with you. Sometimes I wonder if some of the people commenting on here have watched the video at all.
100% agree. He was sick and was neglected. Everyone who had an opportunity to make the right decision about correct treatment and correct environment for him should be held accountable for what happened.
Some people are damaged without being evil. Some evil people were not damaged. This defense attorney is making a good case for the need for mental institutions in this country rather than having teachers and schools dealing with a problem they were never trained to deal with...students who can never fit in.
Our Gov gave us a bad deal when they closed the menta institutions. The fact that there are so many ppl who are bipolar who don’t take their meds, have an episode, are picked up, give them their meds & then release them back in a few days just so they don’t take their meds, etc. etc. is insane. Ppl say that these shootings used to be very rare & now shootings are common, perhaps it’s due to special interests groups who want for those kids to be given 10x chances under the veil of fairness, stigma, etc? It’s harder & harder for professionals/schools, etc. do anything that could actually help the child such as getting special help before they blow up, instead the child’s issues are hidden & problems not addressed. It’s sick to even think that ppl won’t address kids with mental issues so that they themselves aren’t targeted which could cause them to lose a seat in a gov position, are paid off or whatever, all of the kids are the ones who get the brunt of it all, IMO.
I applaud this response so much. I can't praise your comment more, tbh. This kid was passed from incapable service to incapable service one by one. The school resource officer was even afraid of Baker acting him due to the threat of being sued.
mass shootings are exceedingly rare and are anomalies.
You are absolutely RIGHT !! Our country Doesn't have Institutions anymore We have destroyed them all..now our streets are full of Mentally ill ...
@@dontknow3949 rn maybe but when they keep happening it is no longer rare
I was baffled how he could act so normal the day before when he was recording that video, casually talking about committing mass murder. Then completely changes when he gets arrested and says he wants to kill himself. (Like bro what did you expect to happen?) But now I understand how much he was trying to manipulate. He never heard demons or voices. And he's never shed a single tear in court. It was his plan to act crazy to get off with something lighter.
NoorRougetLewis: Cruz is really paying attention since his counsel is up talking…
Fortunately, there’s a difference between crazy and legally insane.
Great job god blessing your understanding P
There are some individuals that need to be institutionalized. Their problems are so severe they need constant medical monitoring and interventions. We need more of these facilities,not less.
In this case he needs to be gone, like not on this 🌎 anymore
But we have fewer, not more FEWER
@@kristenc6839 that why we have courts.
@@bernardofitzpatrick5403 and unfortunately the courts and justice don’t always prevail.
@@kristenc6839 this is true.
This is a disgrace. Not everyone has an easy life and there are millions of people that probably have similar stories of drug addicted parents. They don’t grow up to be school shooters with no remorse. Anything less than the death penalty would be unjust.
The death penalty is kinda easy honestly he’s segregated and sits around for decades before they push a sleepy 😴 needle in his arm life in prison is worse fighting for his life everyday around extremely violent criminals who hate child killers.
@@bassproshophat8999 He will be segregated with life in prison as well, that’s too easy, and why should the tax payers pay for this evil for the next 70 plus years??
@@bassproshophat8999 Yes but he will be fighting for his life everyday around extremely violent criminals who hate child killers for those decades. Then the death penalty. Good riddance to bad rubbish.
@@bassproshophat8999 to be honest he’ll more likely request being solitary away from general population for his safety. And now with this supposed inheritance, he’ll live sort of ok while these families suffer. Anything less than death penalty is unjust !
@Boston Gal I don’t know about that. But regardless anything less than death would diminish the severity of these murders.
Tax payers should not waste their money in keeping this man alive.
@Boston Gal not really,the inmate won't let him last long
SO… you are arguing it is cheaper to allow him to LIVE… in hopes that he is killed?
Not if it’s done the instant the trial is over.
Only thing missing was the violins...
🤡
All things aside she’s great at her job. She did a terrific job up there. Impressive Sista!!!
her closing statement was far from terrific.
She failed.
Let one of the parents handle him. Save the tax payers
Yes!!!
If all commenters on here, bar myself, are from the US, no surprise there. Take a really good look around you. But then you don't recognise it, obviously. From afar, your country can be seen to be literally imploding. No need to wonder why, when these comments get read. Raised on hate, now raising with hate. Generationally sick in yourselves. Smh.
Yes!!!
She was right when she said “there’s no defense”.
I know this is all they have here but I feel like it's totally insulting to so many people, including his siblings. They didn't go shoot up schools.
It is absolutely! I get where you’re coming from. But if she doesn’t try to argue at least some points than it could be a mistrial. she has to try hard and be believable in order for his sentence to stick.
I had abusive, drug addicted parents that passed away to overdose and was also bullied in school. Never wanted to go out and murder kids and ruin other families' lives. People that do what he did is not a mental health problem. Some people just want to watch the world burn. Some people are just plain evil. Medication and rehabilitation do not work for people that enjoy doing these things.
Please show your qualifications to be able to say this.
@@lesleyhughes3174 you seem like a reasonable, thoughtful, kind, and compassionate person.
I agree. I don’t believe people like him change. What he did is not a minor mistake or part of growing pains.
Experience is an often overlooked qualification
You just been put on the watchlist
She's doing an excellent job.
What a fabulous defense. I’m a first year college student beginning to take up pre law with a desire to pursue criminal defense. I have studied this case, and this is the same argument I’d put together. Please don’t get me wrong; mr. Cruz is sick. He is a horrible human being. But there is a reason behind that evil, and I am proud of this lawyer for putting that together.
Don't call this trash a human being. He knew what he was doing, he did it with cold blood, faked to be mentally ill and now is proud of what he did.
Isn't the danger of life in prison that Cruz can try to escape and hurt more people?
He already attacked a deputy after his arrest.
He can also start criminal activities behind bars, as notorious gang leaders have done.
I think people also have a problem with life sentences is that Cruz can follow an education behind bars, have the right of 3 meals a day, medical treatments, mental health care, a warm shower and family visits.
He most likely outlives the lives of his victims parents.
He also hasn't an IQ of 40 because he could go to school and got his math.
For he tried to deceive his interrogator when he was just caught.
Lastly, putting all the blame on the deceased mother for problems as if the parents of the victims didn't have problems while growing up.
There's something like accountability.
For he took a long time to come up with the idea, planning and execution of his urge to kill.
What do you think?
AGREED! So sick of people on the internet shitting on her
you need to rethink your career choice...with a mind like yours you need to be a professional criminal...or a septic tank cleaner....just think of that every day from now until you finally don't...seriously get this thought in your head...starting now
2004
Being a defense attorney must be one of the most emotionally draining jobs there is. At least they make a fair amount of money from it.
She's a public defender. She is definitely not paid enough for her service.
@@misspippers2014 And she's defending a mass shooter. I doubt any of the attorneys or the judge "wanted" this case.
If I get in trouble someday, this chick better be my attorney
Right, she has somehow managed to paint a whole other story jeez
😂😂😂
Agree 🙏
There’s a defense to mass murder?
No, but there is an explanation but even the explanation doesn’t let you escape justice from man.
I feel bad for some lawyers cause even if they know their client is guilty they have to defend them cause it is their job.
@@midnightmeadow9842 he already pled guilty…this is a penalty trial. Death penalty or life without parole
Defense attorneys are a special breed. Key word there “breed”
@@midnightmeadow9842 🧠🦻👀 and you might understand what's actually going on.
hardest job in the room
I’d say sitting “calmly” as a parent listening to their child’s brutal murder would be the hardest job
A defense lawyer is between a rock and a hard place. It is her job to give her client the best, or like Amber Heard, he will appeal, stating the trial was not done correctly. Give the woman a break.
Tbh at 1:35 I think he asked his lawyer “should I cry?” The way his lips move it looks like he could have said that, and then repeated it when she didn’t hear him. Hence the disgusted headshake from her
I’m a great lip reader and you can’t tell what he says because all you see is his jaw moving up and down.
This is her job. I get that. But this is not working for me. So many people have horrific childhoods but don’t kill. Anything but appropriate punishment would be an insult to the victims’ families. My heart breaks for them. Their suffering must be unbearable.
💯 agree
When your child dies, it's undescribable pain...parents will never be the same. Not to mention, every February 14th, a day celebrated with love, will be a constant reminder to each and every one of these parents that lost a child that day.
'Your' appropriate
@Boston Gal so you lived it?
@@thisisme3238 as a mother who recently lost a child, this couldn't be more true. But it's every day, every single day.
My partner had a crackhead mother throughout her childhood, often left with no food, living in tents, left to fend for herself whilist her mother was out getting high.. She is now studying at university and works as an accountant. You cannot blame a bad childhood... Many kids go through a rough childhood and many don't shoot up schools. This excuse of a human is just pure evil.
This isn't about a bad childhood. This is about a fetal alcohol child that was bascially passed-the-buck from one adult who was incapable to take care of him to another until the HS kicked him out. By then he had no support network and was pretty much left to his own volition.
@@gfx2943 tell me how to feel bad for ones actions without telling me you feel bad... 😂😂
You basically just told original commenter it's not about the defendants childhood, only to use examples of the defendants childhood. Oh LAWD 🤦🏻♀️
Agree. And he didn’t have that childhood he was adopted I think.
How lovely for her. Human beings are not formulaic equations though - you can't put X, Y and Z in and expect to always get the same product. Development is complex and varied. It's wonderful that your girlfriend hasn't shot a school full of students, hooray for her, but it's really not relevant to Nicholas Cruz.
@@gfx2943 By no means is that an excuse to sit back & premeditate a horrific massacre !!!! He is pure EVIL !!! He shouldn't even have a trial !!!! Makes me sick that anyone would even make an excuse for such a MONSTER !! IF IT WERE YOUR CHILDREN WOULD YOU BE MAKING THESE SAME EXCUSES ? He had the perfectly fine mindset to plan it, he had the wherewithal to make a FB post about his plans.
I have been on the threat assessment team. There are just things you know. Cannot tell you how many times I wasn’t listened to.
“She and Nicholas…..” Did Brenda kill 17 people?
No, but his mother was no saint. You can't tell me that her consuming drugs and alcohol daily didn't cause emotional, physical and psychological damage to her son.
Yes …. Indirectly by her heinous behaviour whilst pregnant. She damaged his brain.
Aww - poor baby. Let's feel sorry for him for killing 17 people because of his Mom. Give me a break. He killed innocent children.
Good job by this defense attorney.
If you’re sick gtfo the courtroom! Stop caughing
Serial Killer Aileen Wuornos had a pretty rough upbringing similar to that of Nikolas Cruz. Wuornos got no sympathy for all the killings that she did and was sentenced to death and ultimately executed. Rough upbringings are simply not an excuse for murder.
There has to be a unique type of mitigation. Perhaps if show that Cruz was assimilated by the BORG that day he did the shooting, that might the mitigation needed for a life sentence.
She’s not providing an EXCUSE; she is providing an EXPLANATION so that the jury can make an INFORMED DECISION concerning his fate.
He did not have a rough upbringing.
Je pense que même si il a eu une enfance malheureuse sa ne lui permet pas d'avoir tué 17 personnes qui malheureusement ne sont plus de se monde et dont les parents souffrent et souffriront toute leur vie
It's easy to get caught up in emotion, but every citizen is afforded the right to a fair trial. Try not to think of Cruz but more about those who have been falsely accused and need to have the same kind of rights afforded to them. Also, death penalty doesn't mean instant death it means years of appeals (more tax payer money) , whereas life sentence is throwing away the key. But I get it, he deserves what he dished out.
100% agree with this. That’s been playing with my head. I would be for the death penalty in this case if it wouldn’t drag on in appeals for the next 20years for those families.
Tax payers will pay for his dental medical and housing and he may live 90+ years.... that adds up like crazy. This case is a hard thing to judicate for sure. It's really going to come down to psychological analyst ect. And how the jury sees the world. It's so sad though regardless. I can see your point though.
Life sentence also means the entire appeal process, unless the defendant accepts a deal.
@@georgiadreamingbb1245
It costs taxpayers more money to execute someone than it does if they got Life W/O parole. Even if they never get executed and stay on death row, it costs way more than living in Gen Pop.
Not that I would take that into consideration if I had to decide between life and death.
The state I live in doesn't have the death penalty, but life is actually life. There's no possibility of parole, so, in essence, it's similar to a death sentence, except they won't get automatic appeals.
@mcacorn
Cruz already pleaded guilty; this is solely to decide punishment (life in prison or death).
I'd be terrified sitting next to him and being his defense lawyer
Terrified of who? Him? Or people that see you defending him?
The defense lawyers are probably the safest from Cruz than anyone else in that room.
Why? That phase has gone. But a waste of my time trying to get that to sink in.
This young man fell through the system. So sad so many people have been hurt by this tragic event.
Yes, before anyone decides to stone me. lol
I think he is mean & full of hatred. But I think he was failed from the minute he began growing in the womb. Doesn’t mean I think he deserves any type of free ride. But as much as he hates people. Living in prison with people every minute would be so much more punishment then a quick easy death.
1. The jury CANNOT consider any system “failing” as a mitigating factor. At all.
2. Tragic event??? This was a killing. A mass shooting. A slaughter. He’s evil.
3. Hurt??? Really??? Try devastated. Try lives ruined. Wounded who are crippled for life. Parents who buried kids. Spouses that became widows. Try emotionally and psychologically annihilated for the rest of their lives.
@@Anna-yp9zl nope, he fears death far more, yet forced this upon several minors. People with worse upbringings haven't done this act. And he doesn't seem to regret it at all, it's all pathetic manipulation on his part with interrogations and "apologies". Death row will be all the benefits of Life + the fear of being subjected to the same terrible fate he set those people to
@@lowhp_comic just bc some ppl going thru a lot didn’t end up killing doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be excused the point is he’s mental mentals shouldn’t just die off they belong in a mental asylum or prison to control them but not die off that’s cruel he shouldn’t be in society but it’s sad he’s mental
@@Anna-yp9zl yeah I think things like this show that no one’s born evil. We really need to do better as a society not to fail children because we consistently see people with a violent childhood commit crimes, if we want to stop them we have to address the root of the issue.
Wow people!!!There were so many red flags I know he deserves what he gets He is guilty but there are a lot of people guilty as well
The one and only person guilty here is the defendant. Period.
She makes a good point.
Abortion is sometimes necessary. His biological mother should also be held accountable.
She died of cancer like a year ago a few months after speaking with Cruz in prison for the first time
I wonder if he knew these things about his early beginning or did he learn them during this case? It must hurt to hear these things out loud.
I wondered the same thing
What BS…jurors are told not to take into consideration the feelings of the the victims of the crime..but they are supposed to take into consideration the perpetrator’s childhood trauma
🤔🙄
@@lesleyhughes3174 please put some substance behind those emoji’s
@@snakeeyes037 words mean absolutely nothing to some. I show my disgust in that ignorance by way of emojis because more words are a total waste of time. And, substance!
So that society as a whole can know what to do to prevent this happening as much as it does.
FABULOUS point!
Nickolas isn't special needs.
As an Attorney she has done a great discussion.!
She got her client the best possible outcome.
STOP WITH THE CALGARY GEM & MINERAL SHOW ADS EVERY FEW MINUTES! ENOUGH!
This lawyer is amazing, one and an half hour monologue. With people coughing through out.
I noticed that. Didn’t do that any other time
And the phone ringtone. I almost thought they put emotional music lol
People it is a irony that this Brenda woman manage to get pregnant three times and don't lose the babies regardless of her drugs and heavy alcohol intake while women like Linda and so many can't keep a baby in their womb.
Life simply isn't fair
This is a bit theatrical. We get it, Brenda was an addict. We hear you and your poetry.
I know lots of people who have it way worse than he did and never even thought of doing something so heinous. Evil is evil
Not everyone handles situations like that in the same way, everyone is wired differently, not an excuse but surely an explanation.
"An Irish poet ---" JUST STOPPPPP
I was impressed by her skills to convey the point. This tragedy was so unnecessary and the society failed Cruz and all the kids that were killed. They should sue the school and the system.
Which means suing yourself because taxpayer $ will pay for the suit.
@@dmurph1320 I am not from the US so won’t be paid by me :)
They did. There are still lawsuits that are ongoing.
@@missaretha1969 interesting, is there going to be a trial at some point?
cruz is the only perpetrator here
Imagine give that speach in front of those I don't know the number family members who are mourning their children 's lives. I'm gonna puke
1:55 who is the comic book villian in the background ?
She's doing the best she can with what she has to work with, and I wouldn't want to be in her shoes.
Presents defence. What defence , he has no
*Parentless is NOT equal to murder other people’s babies!!!!!!!!*
Failure on so many levels by so many ppl that lead up to this horrific unacceptable event😪
As a parent of a special needs child who doesn't walk, talk, feed or toilet himself, and was fully included in our neighborhood school, I"m here to tell you that what it actually means is "The least restrictive APPROPRIATE environment", which is different for different children. Some children, especially children with certain behavioral issues, require a more restrictive program than others, which would still qualify as "APPROPRIATE environment", because they require more restriction. Well, he's getting the restrictive environment now. Plenty of children who have FAS, as well as many other disorders do not turn out to be killers. This young man was not taught, for whatever reason, actions/consequences, which teaches SELF-discipline, they learn to stop themselves from bad behavior, which is what we all need in order to become independent.
A little too late, don't you think? And it's happening there every day. Your system has been failing children and their parents for much too many years.
Derek, thank you for your efforts at a parent. Cruz knew what he planned was wrong. Or he would not have hidden it, & wouldn’t have left the gun & vest & try to escape. Imagine all the criminals out there watching to see if they can se their own sob story.
@@dmurph1320 I think you confuse few things . Knowing what you do is wrong as - I know because I feel it , or I know the consequences or just knowing because you remember it is wrong. People with brain damage should be in institutions not in prisons. Does every child with brain damage ends up to be a murderer- no. There are other factors such as proper support, training, therapy, even family life. Many things have to go wrong for this to happen. In this case it did. It’s same with psychopath brain. Around 20% of people have development of the brain that can make them a psychopath but 20% are not psychopaths. It is important to invest into proper help for kids, encouraging families with 2 parents , not single motherhood, limit access to guns, make sure children are diagnosed properly and are isolated from people when have to be.
@@dmurph1320 Completely agree.
@@petrasmiles1029 Be very careful about making sweeping statements like what you just stated above, "People with brain damage should be in institutions, not prisons". People with disabilities do NOT check their civil rights at the door, they do still have the right to be educated and live in the "least restrictive environment", this is legal language, and it is a fact. The truth is so many of us walk around in our normal everyday life, working full time jobs, married with families, and are actually sporting a "damaged brain", and they'll never know it till they might come through an ER and require a brain scan. The brain is an amazing organ and it can repair itself from damage over time, other parts of the brain can be taught to do things that are normally done in different areas of the brain. Having the desire and the will to succeed and have a good life makes that job so much easier. If you don't want to do the work, or you can't do the work, things are going to be much more difficult for you. The person must want ,and have the desire to succeed ad have a good life.
i just want to know why??? the mother always gets the blame for their childs actions, and rarely the father? weather he is in the picture or not.
Drinking reduces the sperm count but doesn't impeded develop of said sperm once fertilized
When will the sentencing be!???…….that’s what i wanna know!
I have a question can a defence attorney be a procesutor in different case?
@@Desperado583 nice thx❤️
Yes, But its very hard to be both.
Guilty and his Defensive Team..
Is the constant coughing some sort of strategy to distract from the attorney's monologue? It is so incredibly distracting. Huge props to this lady for being able to maintain her focus and speaking despite the continuous spluttering from the audience.
If I were one of the parents, I’d be doing more than coughing.
Um, it’s actually the judge that’s coughing if you pay attention. I don’t think she has an agenda.
@@stephanieann1213 I watched the entire thing and saw absolutely nothing to suggest it was the judge who was coughing. Regardless, it's beyond infuriating.
@@dmurph1320 Then you probably wouldn't be permitted in the court room 🤷♀️
@@OhCrumbs96 then you need to start over and watch again.
STOP COUGHING!! Lol.
Now I see why lawyers get paid so much...brilliant presentation.
Public defenders do NOT get paid alot.
Take note of everything she said about the situation in Broward county where the system is the reason for the deaths of all the children sue Broward county for millions of dollars and the school system sue them for millions of dollars and the police officer who didn't go into the school, sue him and sue nickolas Cruz's, sue him,
I know people who have come out of environments just like this and stayed in the straight and narrow.
No, you don't. You are not qualified to compare.
I don't really?
He knew he was doing wrong. That’s why he left the gun & vest & ran.
I thought opening statements start at the beginning of trail
I cant understand the timeline with these videos. Im trying to watch this case in order, and it seems like these videos are just everywhere.
Excellent Opening Statement
This crime of murdering all 17 people is MORE than ENOUGH to enforce the Death Penalty 200000%! No excuse for killing these precious children and these adults.
And what punishment can we give the FBI, who are very complicit in this tragedy? Does $127.5 million really absolve them of their neglect? This incident should never have happened.
Master class ....
This is so tragic all the way around..... this is why kids need to be removed from situations like this all the way around no close family ect. Give them a fighting chance to break the chains that bind them to the lifestyle that results in this kind of personality disorder.
He was taken away and given a fighting chance. He choose not to take it. His adoptive mom got him help, gave him love and they didn’t struggle from being poor. She even let him have his real half brother to grow up with. The poor mom was always calling the cops on them. Now they are getting money from a reality show after all those kids died. This is all so gross.
You understand his adoptive mother (who died along with the adopted father)‘a ability to parent WAY different than I understood it.
@@kimkr9925 perhaps I saw parts of the trial that you didn’t. The adoptive dad died way before the mom. The mom died after he was of age and out of school. Also even though he was 19 when she past he had a home with family friends afterwards. He was not on the street without help.
He was removed and given a loving home. He deserves no excuses, and this is coming from someone who had a hard life and has a diagnosed personality disorder (same diagnosis as him actually) - he is a MONSTER who deserves NO excuses or pity
Defense attorneys are a special breed. Key word there “breed”
And if you were on trial, guilty or not, you’d be happy the law requires you to have representation.
And your breed is?
Such a horrible, sad story...about how adults screw up all of these kids. Public schools are jungles where only the strongest survive. Such incompetence by all adults in the life of that murderer. My heart goes to the parents of those killed kids. I don't envy juries to hear all of this evidence and make a life or death decision. We only hear about shooting in public schools, mostly, I may be mistaken, but I cannot remember shootings at private ones.
I went to a private school and the bullying was every bit as bad if not worse but, hey I live in Australia and guns are not as easily accessible here, not that I ever thought of doing such a thing but, the bullying at private school was the worst. School Children just need to quit the bullying.
Nicks lawyer smiling for any reason in court while prosecutor is giving closing statement is unacceptable and disrespectful to everybody.
He isn't holding his head down and trying to stay covered anymore. It's all about him now. Exactly what he wants. His head is held high now...
IMO there is absolutely no excuse for his calculated decision to commit mass murder. He planned this for a long time. Watched videos and critiqued other mass murderers, listened to music that glorified his future actions.
When he plead guilty he said he wanted the victims families to decide his punishment. Guess not because here we are. He is trying to punk out ..
Didn't his mom leave him a ton of inheritance money?
Why is the defense knocking Linda Cruz? Went as far as to hint that she was prejudice yet she adopted a mixed child.
He spent all of his inheritance
What a horrible young man
Your argument is flawed, erroneous and frankly puerile.
( Is anyone else hearing someone “sniffing” and shuffling papers paper in a microphone?? )
For me this whole process is unnecessary and a waste of time and money. It plays into the hands of would be mass shooters rather than a quick execution of the (hands down), guilty person . Would be mass shooters must see and realize they too will be executed within one week .
🤔🙄
And what punishment can we give the FBI, who are very complicit in this tragedy? Does $127.5 million really absolve them of their neglect? This incident should never have happened.
It’s not like I could hate this person . We just need to set an example for all mass shooters .
So if they don’t take there own life in the act or eliminated by the police , they will be executed within a week .
11:26 "his brain is broken" hahahahhahahhaha
I agree he deserves a fair trial etc… but rather you agree or disagree with the death penalty or not the state of Florida has it and if killing 17 beautiful souls doesn’t qualify for the death penalty what does?
Perhaps the death penalty is reserved for murderers WITHOUT disorders and background trauma who murder indiscriminately…
EVERYONE can invent a sob story.
@@kimkr9925 mental disorders and trauma is very real. No question about that. Accordingly to Wiki 99 people have been executed in Florida from 1979 to 2019. Every situation is different but I would bet that everyone of those 99 people had some sort of background trauma. People definitely failed him in life at some point.
@@kimkr9925 oh please. Like everything in life, there is spectrums to mental disorders and the effects of FAS. He had been planning this attack, he was able to hold a job, he was able to film his little sadistic monologue, he was able to order himself an uber, he was able to get those guns and ammo, he was able to use his “un-fine” motor skills to gun down 17 innocent humans(most of them children), he was able to reload those guns he managed to obtain, he was able to stay focused during screams of horror from children who he targeted, through the fire alarm going off, he was able to have the know how to disguise himself with the other students to escape the scene… his little sob story is nothing but the defense attorney trying to do the best she can. Many people have similar stories and have never mapped out a plan to gun down 17 innocent people in cold blood. The only sad part is that he won’t suffer, he should be put down by a firing squad.
Lol no. I can’t take this opening serious.. Irish poet and all included
How the parents don’t rush him in that court room is remarkable
Melisa..you the bes
I hate how he casually looks at the crowd as if they are all there for someone else not him
Its disgusting that they keep pointing the cameras at the families.
Whatever gets the thumbnails and views right
He's a cold hearted murder period.................... he deserves everything that's coming to him. I has a mother don't know the hurt and the pain that them mother's and father's are going though. But if someone was to take the life off one off my kids I would want them to pay for what they did...... so I will stand with all off theses heartbroken family's has they deserves justice.
Please tell me what boost steaks is
Stealing meat/steak from grocery stores and then trading it for drugs.
Excuse me.. what?
Did I read/hear that correctly?
..
DEFENSE???