THE LEGAL CASE

The decision to charge Peterson will be closely watched by South Florida’s law enforcement community.

Police officers are generally afforded wide latitude under Florida criminal law for their actions while on duty. One case that may come into play for Peterson’s defense: that of William Lozano, the Miami cop convicted of manslaughter for fatally shooting a man on a motorcycle in 1989.

A Miami appeals court overturned his conviction, ruling that jurors in the criminal case could not hear evidence that he violated his police training. The Miami cop’s former attorney, Roy Black, reviewed the arrest warrant and said Peterson can look to the Lozano case law.

“They want to hold him accountable based on his active shooter training. I don’t think that meets the Lozano test under Florida law,” said Black, who is not involved in the Peterson case. “The law has to apply to all people equally. They can’t single him out based on his training.”

Jeff Bell, the president of the Broward Sheriff’s Office Deputies Association, said the union does not represent Peterson, but it was nonetheless troubled by the criminal charges.

“He didn’t do anything to intentionally put anyone in harm’s way,” Bell said. “Do I think these criminal charges will ultimately stick? No.”

DiRuzzo, Peterson’s defense lawyer, said the child neglect charges are wrong because the police officers cannot be considered “caregivers” for minor children.

“The actions taken today against my client should concern the American public and every public employee who, under the State’s misguided legal theory, could be criminally liable for actions taken as a ‘caregiver,’” DiRuzzo said.

The state’s decision to charge Peterson carries considerable political implications.

Gov. DeSantis has made accountability for the shooting a priority in Broward County, where in his first week in office he suspended Israel and replaced him with a former police sergeant who’d left the force in Coral Springs to run a mass-casualty incident training firm. And former governor Scott, now a U.S. Senator, called again Tuesday for accountability from the FBI, which blew an extremely detailed tip that Cruz was a potential school shooter.

Back in Broward, newly appointed Sheriff Gregory Tony touted the department’s improved training Tuesday. And the attorney for suspended Sheriff Israel, meanwhile, questioned how the state can accuse Peterson of neglecting his training while also citing poor training in its justification for the removal of Israel.

Israel is scheduled to make his case for reinstatement this month in Tallahassee before a specially appointed hearing officer. He also has a summer hearing before the Florida Senate. His attorney, Ben Kuehne, said the case against Peterson will become a part of the case over Israel’s suspension.

“The sheriff’s team takes no comfort in criminal charges being brought against a former deputy,” Kuehne said. “We wish him well in his legal proceedings.”

Sheriff Tony announced that he’d fired Peterson Tuesday, although the distinction is a technicality because Peterson resigned and retired last year.

While Peterson instantly became a figure of national scorn, other deputies have been harshly criticized as well for shirking their duties or being dishonest during police interviews about their response to the shooting.

ANOTHER DEPUTY FIRED

Sgt. Brian Miller was also fired Tuesday by BSO, and accused of neglecting his duties as a sheriff’s deputy. He was among several deputies singled out by the MSD commission as having failed to properly respond to the shooting.

“He sat up on Holmberg Road for 10 minutes,” Gualtieri, the commission’s chairman, said during a hearing last year. “He heard gunshots and he didn’t move. He never got on the radio . ... He didn’t act.”

Bell, of the police union, said he expects Miller will get his job back at arbitration with BSO. “It’s a vindictive atmosphere at the agency,” Bell said. “They want to show the parents that they are tough and issuing discipline.”

Miami Herald reporters Colleen Wright and Mary Ellen Klas contributed to this report.