Stoneman Douglas families say victims fund could help bring them relief

The families of Parkland shooting victims pleaded with legislators Tuesday to create a special fund to help compensate them.

They also shared with Broward School Board members and the Broward legislative delegation how their grief is enormous nine months after the Feb. 14 massacre.

“As time goes on and the world moves on, you don’t,” said Debra Hixon, whose husband Chris, a coach and security monitor, was killed. “It’s such a profound loss, you can’t move on.”

Hixon was joined by Mitch Dworet, whose son Nick was killed, and Tony Montalto, who lost his daughter Gina, in speaking at a meeting Tuesday.

“I still find it difficult to believe my beautiful 14-year-old daughter didn’t come home that day,” Montalto said. “There were serious and widespread failures that created this occasion.”

He said one of the major ones was leaving gates unlocked and unguarded during school hours..

But they have few easy options to hold the school district liable for what happened, the families said. State law limits the total liability of school boards and other government agencies to $300,000 per incident. That would have to be shared by all 17 families who lost a loved one, as well as 17 others whose family member was injured.

To get around that, families would have to file a claims bill with the Legislature, which allows for an increased award if they are also successful in court. It’s a process that often drags on for years.

“We’re seeing claims bills that have been around for 10 years,” said Rep. Richard Stark, D-Weston.

The families say it's unfair to make them go through that process, which they said is particularly complicated because of the large number of victims. A victims fund could be a solution, they say, without specifying should be.

School Board Chairwoman Heather Brinkworth said that she was open to options, recognizing “there’s nothing we can do or say that will undo the horrific acts of Feb. 14.”

Stark said local legislators are looking for ways to improve the process. That may mean making it easier for affected parties to collect from local governments.

“This is something the Legislature is going to have to deal with,” he said. “Leadership will be coming from this delegation.” how large it