PARKLAND, Fla. _ Ex-school cop Scot Peterson was freed from jail Thursday afternoon after a judge slashed his jail bond by more than half, dropping it to $39,500.
He has 48 hours after being released to present his passport. His girlfriend, Lydia Rodriguez, was driving the passport down from North Carolina to Broward County within 12 hours.
In a bond hearing Thursday, Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer also modified the terms of Peterson's pretrial release. He no longer is required to wear a GPS tracking device, which means he can go home to North Carolina before his trial.
Peterson was the closest Broward sheriff's deputy to the gunman during the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018, when a former student killed 17 people. Peterson faces 11 charges for failing to confront the Parkland shooter.
Peterson isn't allowed to work around children, the judge ruled.
Peterson's original bond amount was $102,000.
The prosecutors' office argued that the court should follow the bail terms set forth by Judge Andrew Seigel, who signed the initial affidavit.
Peterson's defense argued that he isn't a flight risk, or someone who likely would disappear from the country. That's because Peterson has appeared in court every time he was summoned and was a longtime resident of the community.
The courtroom was packed for the proceedings. When Peterson was brought in, the clinking chains shackling his hands and feet announced his entrance.
Responding to defense attorney Joseph DiRuzzo's initial remarks, Assistant State Attorney Tim Donnelly called attention to the motion filed by DiRuzzo's team on Wednesday that sought to poke holes in the charges.
Donnelly said that if the defense had issues with the charges as stated, they could file a motion to dismiss the case and he would address those. However, the motion filed by DiRuzzo to address the bond and release terms seemed "disingenuous," he said.
He pointed specifically to the argument of whether Peterson could be considered a caregiver and whether his position as a law enforcement officer automatically overrode that consideration.
In a possible preview of the case, the two sides sparred over the definition of a caregiver according to various Florida statutes. Donnelly said the definition had been applied broadly in the past. "It's included kidnappers. It's included juveniles. It's included teachers."
Ultimately, Donnelly said he was content with whatever the court deemed reasonable for Peterson's bond and release terms, but he did not want those details marred by "fallacies contained in the motion."
DiRuzzo lightly engaged these arguments, but ultimately steered the conversation back to Peterson's bond terms and release. At the end of the proceedings, he said he was happy that his client will be "treated fairly like any other criminal defendant."
DiRuzzo did not reveal who paid Peterson's bond, but said it was not a gift. He also did not say whether Peterson would return to his residence on Seldom Seen Lane in North Carolina.
