Shooter wants massacre details hidden

Court hearing today on what public learns

Confessed killer Nikolas Cruz is trying to limit what we get to learn about his murderous rampage at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

A judge will decide whether that makes sense.

Cruz’s lawyers will be in court today asking Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer to conceal a report based on Cruz’s education records, a report the school district commissioned to assess how it handled his time at Stoneman Douglas and other schools.

The district for months has deflected media requests for information and promised the report would answer a host of questions. But Cruz’s attorneys are trying to block its release, saying it would compromise his right to a fair trial — even

though they acknowledge he’s guilty.

Separately, Cruz’s attorneys have tried to stop release of his statement to police after his arrest Feb. 14.

The effort failed, but the legal maneuvering left the impression that Cruz’s team is trying to keep a grip on the flow of public information.

Attorneys for the First Amendment Foundation have been involved in each of the public records arguments related to the case — joining the South Florida Sun Sentinel and other local and national media outlets.

The foundation’s president, Barbara Petersen, said Cruz’s attorneys are making a predictable attempt to limit information before his trial.

“Cruz is not in the driver’s seat,” Petersen said. “His attorneys are doing what they do all the time, which is to protect their client’s interest. But the judges are the ones in the driver’s seat.”

Cruz’s attorneys at the Broward Public Defender’s Office declined interview requests. Experts said the lawyers are doing what they must in a case where their client’s life is on the line. Cruz faces the death penalty if convicted of 17 counts of first-degree murder.

“Our sole aim is to protect the interest of our clients,” said defense lawyer Johnny McCray, who is not connected to the case. “It’s not my aim or objective to concern myself with what the public wants. I’m trying to ensure my client gets a fair trial.”

So far, judges have ruled in favor of public disclosure every time the issue has been raised.

An appellate court authorized the release of security camera footage from outside the school on the day of the killings. Cruz’s attorneys weren’t involved in that debate, but the school district plans to appeal the ruling to the Florida Supreme Court.

Scherer authorized the release of most of Cruz’s statement to police, although portions that are considered “the substance of a confession” can be withheld under law.

Circuit Judge Patti Englander Henning ruled that the school district can release the report containing Cruz’s education records because it is not part of a criminal investigation. Cruz’s lawyers are asking Scherer to rule on the same question, but on different grounds: that Cruz will not get a fair trial if the report is released.

Florida’s public records laws generally favor disclosure of documents and evidence that prosecutors turn over to the defense, with specific exceptions.

Most public records exemptions are lifted once evidence is introduced at trial or the case is resolved. Cruz’s lawyers have offered to have him plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence, clearing the path for a release of most of the evidence.

The State Attorney’s Office has countered that the killer in this case should not get to choose his punishment.