Report: Schools ran Parkland suspect’s education properly
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Broward County schools officials in general properly handled the special-needs education of troubled Parkland shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz, according to an independent report released late Friday on the orders of a judge.
The 70-page report , much of which is heavily redacted under privacy rules, concludes that during Cruz’s 16 years in the school system the correct decisions were made in most instances under programs for students with learning disabilities and behavioral problems.
“Available evidence indicates that, with isolated exceptions, the district adhered to procedural and substantive requirements when implementing this student’s exceptional education program,” says the report by Collaborative Educational Network Inc. and commissioned by the Broward school board.
Release of the report came after Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer overruled defense objections that the report paints a misleading portrait of Cruz’s longstanding psychological problems, many of which have already been disclosed. Scherer said all of Cruz’s actual educational records are among 27 pages of redacted material, which are exempt from disclosure.
“I do find there is nothing in the redacted report ... that would interfere with the administration of justice and the defendant’s right to a fair trial,” Scherer said.
Attorneys for media organizations including The Associated Press argued the report had to be disclosed under Florida’s broad public records laws.
Cruz, 19, faces the death penalty if convicted of 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder in the Valentine’s Day massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. His attorneys have said he will plead guilty if guaranteed a life prison sentence, but prosecutors have rejected that offer.
The report focused on two instances during Cruz’s schooling where state law or the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act was not followed. These involved a requirement that consent be obtained from either a parent or an adult student before placement in an alternative school and an improper response by school officials when Cruz requested special services after having them revoked several months earlier.
The exact details of these violations were not provided, but the report makes recommendations on such things as training to make sure the proper procedures are followed and consider “all possible scenarios” in what can be emotionally charged meetings. A number of other general recommendations for improvement of the handling of students like Cruz were also listed.