FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. _ A Broward judge on Wednesday authorized the public release of more video from cameras positioned outside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School during February's mass shooting.
The video may shed more light on the law enforcement response to Nikolas Cruz's rampage, which left 17 dead and 17 more wounded.
Attorneys for the Broward School Board argued in court earlier this month that the video will expose the limits of the cameras on campus and weaken school security. The Broward State Attorney's Office also argued against releasing any video records, saying they are the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation.
But Broward Circuit Judge Jeffrey R. Levenson reviewed hours of video and determined that they should be released to the public.
Media organizations, including the Sun Sentinel, concluded from various public statements that additional video exists that shows more of the law enforcement response to the shooting. The Sheriff's Office is investigating other agencies' allegations that other deputies failed to enter the school to help wounded students or engage Cruz when they arrived on the scene.
The school board will have two weeks to review the video and appeal Levenson's decision.
The Broward Sheriff's Office previously released some of the video on March 15. It focused on the response of School Resource Officer Scot Peterson, a uniformed deputy who took up a position against the wall of one building and stood there for about 25 minutes, until well after Cruz had completed the killings in an adjacent building and left the campus.
Peterson later resigned.
Several family members of the victims in the case signed affidavits urging Levenson to honor their loved ones' memories by keeping revealing videos private.
Attorneys for the media organizations seeking the release stressed that they did not want to obtain videos showing victims.
