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Nikolas Cruz, the shooter who killed 17 people at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Broward County Circuit Court Judge Elizabeth Scherer handed down the sentence Wednesday afternoon (November 2) after a jury ruled to spare the 24-year-old killer the death penalty. She can only sentence Cruz to life in prison, which he will serve consecutively.
Survivors and families of slain victims continued fiery remarks against Cruz before the sentence. Samantha Fuentes, who suffered permanent bullet shrapnel wounds during the massacre, said she watched the gunman murder her two friends.
"You gave me and many others a lifetime of trauma, pain, and suffering long after you committed this crime, and for what? You're nobody, now. You're not special," she told Cruz directly. "The people that you killed will have a legacy much more important than you."
During day one of the hearing, the grandmother of victim Alyssa Alhadeff told the shooter to "burn in hell."
The sentencing concludes a three-month trial, including chilling videos and testimony from the prosecution, and days of jury deliberations. The defense argued that the shooter was mentally ill and affected by his mother's substance abuse during her pregnancy.
Cruz was 19 years old when he carried out one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history on February 18, 2018. The expelled student used an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle he legally purchased to slay 17 people and injure 17 more. He confessed to the heinous massacre and pleaded guilty to 17 counts of first-degree murder last year.
He will serve out his life sentence at a maximum security prison, according to his lawyers. He will serve a