Parkland school shooter avoids the death penalty after jury recommends life in prison

The Parkland school shooter has avoided the death penalty after a jury recommended he be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the February 2018 massacre at Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School – a move that stunned the families of his victims.

The jury’s recommendation Thursday, coming after a monthslong trial to decide Nikolas Cruz’s fate, is not an official sentence; Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer still is expected to issue the gunman’s formal sentence on November 1. Under Florida law, however, she cannot depart...