Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz’s defence attorneys request to withdraw from death penalty trial

Trial to decide if killer of 17 is sentenced to death or life in prison without parole

The team of public defenders representing Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz requested to withdraw from the trial that will decide if he will be sentenced to death after the judge ordered them to proceed with jury selection despite one of the five lawyers being ill with Covid-19.

The motion to withdraw by Cruz’s lead attorney Melisa McNeill was rejected by Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer. The legal team then filed a motion requesting that the judge remove herself from the case, arguing that she was biased against Cruz. The judge also dismissed that request.

The defence team also filed a motion for an indefinite delay of the Cruz trial, saying that the school shooting on 24 May in Uvalde, Texas in which 19 children and two teachers were killed has reignited feelings in Broward County, Florida where Cruz killed 17 people on 14 February 2018 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

They said the recent shooting makes it impossible for him to get a fair trial at this time. The judge didn’t rule on that motion.

Judge Scherer and Ms McNeill argued on Monday concerning if jury selection should go ahead without the presence of Casey Secor, a South Carolina death penalty defence specialist working with Ms McNeill. The judge argued that Mr Secor could watch the proceedings via video link and communicate with Ms McNeill by phone or text.

The judge accused Ms McNeill of intentionally providing ineffectual counsel to Cruz by saying her team would not participate without Mr Secor. Judge Scherer at one point recessed the hearing, telling Ms McNeill to consult the Florida Bar over what sanctions she might face if she and her team refused to participate. She said four attorneys present for Cruz in the courtroom was enough.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz glances at Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill during jury selection in the penalty phase of his trial at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Monday, June 6, 2022 (AP)

Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill argues for a continuance due to an ill member of the legal team during jury selection in the penalty phase of the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz (AP)

Ms McNeill pushed back, arguing that it was the judge who was creating grounds for a successful appeal of ineffectual defence counsel by insisting that the jury selection go ahead without Mr Secor. Ms McNeill said Mr Secor has special expertise in that area. She added that more than half of successful death penalty appeals are over issues that come up during jury selection.

If Cruz is sentenced to death, a successful appeal would result in a retrial several years from now.

Assistant Public Defender Tamara Curtis, left, reacts to Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill during a break in the day's jury selection in the penalty phase of the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz (AP)

Assistant Public Defender Melisa McNeill, left, speaks with Assistant Public Defender Nawal Bashimam during jury selection in the penalty phase of the trial of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooter Nikolas Cruz (AP)

“These (victims’) families do not need to be coming back to this courtroom,” Ms McNeill said, adding that Judge Scherer’s threat to sanction her created a conflict between her obligation to provide Cruz with the best defence possible and her obligation to her career and family not to endanger her law license.

Prosecutors originally agreed with the defence to delay the jury selection until Mr Secor returned, but then told the judge she would be on sound legal ground if she chose to move forward without him.

The defence got what it and the prosecution had agreed to at the beginning of the day. Two groups with 36 potential jurors in total were only asked if any new hardships such as job or family commitments had come up since they were last in court two months previously. The 20 who said they could still serve will be brought back for further questioning.

The 23-year-old Cruz pleaded guilty in October to 17 counts of first-degree murder. The court has spent two months trying to pick 12 jurors and eight alternates ahead of a four-month trial that will decide if he is sentenced to death or life in prison without parole.

Jury selection was initially set to be finished by the middle of last month but has crept along, and was delayed for two weeks when Ms McNeill was infected with Covid-19.

An original pool of about 1,800 potential jurors has been whittled down to about 300 with the process in Phase 2 of 3. After being simply asked during Phase 1 whether their jobs and lives would allow them to serve for four months, the potential jurors are now being asked in Phase 2 their opinions on the death penalty and whether they can be fair to Cruz.

Phase 3 would involve individual questioning. Judge Scherer is hoping to have 150 potential jurors for that phase, but right now only 35 have advanced out of Phase 2 while about 95 have been rejected.

The Associated Press contributed to this report