FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla._A report released Friday suggests the Broward County School District mishandled the case of student Nikolas J. Cruz, the Parkland school shooter, during his final two years in school.
Cruz had requested to return to the special education program in the Broward schools, the report reveals for the first time, and the district did not respond properly.
As the shooter awaits trial, questions swirl about whether school employees did everything they could _ and everything legally required _ to prevent the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
A consultant, Collaborative Educational Network of Tallahassee, found that the school district largely followed the policies and laws in place when educating Cruz, but failed on two occasions.
Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer ordered the 46-page report released on Friday, but it leaves many questions unanswered. Much of the content was blacked out at the school district's request, apparently including any details that would explain the district's mistakes. Circuit Judge Patti Englander Henning also ruled that the school district could release the report.
Cruz's attorneys argued unsuccessfully in court that the report would hinder his right to a fair trial. Scherer agreed with attorneys for the South Florida Sun Sentinel and other media outlets, who argued that the taxpayer-funded report should not be hidden from view.
The report suggests the district did not follow laws or policies in place when school employees attempted to transfer Cruz, then a junior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas, back to a special education campus.
Cruz refused, and removed himself from the special education program. The report reveals for the first time that at some point afterward, he changed his mind and asked that his special education services be restored. The district did not respond properly to his request, the report says.
The revelation bolsters criticism from some special education experts, who said the district should have done more for Cruz, who had emotional and behavioral problems.
Cruz's attorneys said the report is a "whitewash" commissioned by the school district to absolve it of responsibility for how it handled Cruz's complex psychological problems.
"I think that the report is an attempt by the school board to absolve itself of any liability or responsibility for all the missed opportunities that they had in this matter," said Gordon Weekes, the chief assistant public defender who is the spokesman for the defense team. "Nikolas Cruz has always been, and remains, willing to plead guilty in return for multiple life sentences in prison."
Broward Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie said in March, when the $60,000 report was ordered, that it would be conducted "with both transparency and a sense of urgency."
The consultant's analysis was not done "through the lens of hindsight," the report says, though the recommendations are "informed by this tragedy."
"With isolated exceptions, the district adhered to procedural and substantive requirements," the report says.
In a written statement, Runcie said he looks forward to release of the full report "as soon as it is legally appropriate." He said the review shows that the district's "systems are appropriate" and that the district worked consistently "to provide an education and ongoing, changing behavioral care for Cruz throughout his time in the Broward school system."
