Parkland families address school gunman at sentencing

Family members of victims vented their anger that the gunman was spared the death penalty

The gunman who killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, has been sentenced to life in prison without parole.

A jury last month voted for the defendant to be spared the death penalty, in a decision that outraged relatives of the victims.

Ahead of the sentencing, victims' family members delivered emotional messages of grief and anger.

The gunman pleaded guilty in October last year to the 2018 murders.

Shackled and wearing a red prison jumpsuit, the killer showed no emotion as Broward County Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer formally sentenced him on Wednesday.

During hard-hitting statements over the course of two days, family members of the victims addressed the murderer - 24-year-old Nikolas Cruz - without ever using his name.

• Florida shooting: Who are the victims?

• Why the Parkland gunman was spared the death penalty

Earlier on Wednesday he removed a mask after Jennifer Guttenberg, the mother of Jaime Guttenberg, said it was "disrespectful" of him not to show his face.

Beigel Schulman said she was glad the killer would have to worry about his personal safety for the rest of his days in a maximum-security prison.

Theresa Rabinovitz, whose 14-year-old granddaughter, Alyssa Alhadeff, was among those killed, said: "I hope your every breathing moment here on earth is miserable."

Meghan Petty, the sister of 14-year-old victim Alaina Petty, said she felt "betrayed" by the jury's decision on 13 October to let the gunman live.

"He has escaped this punishment because a minority of the jury was given the power to overturn the majority decision made by people who were able to see him for what he is - a remorseless monster who deserves no mercy," Ms Petty was quoted as saying by the Washington Post.

A former Stoneman Douglas student, the gunman was 19 years old when he entered the school and opened fire using a legally purchased rifle. In addition to the 14 students and three staff members who were killed, 17 people were wounded.

Over the course of a three-month trial, prosecutors sought to prove the crimes were "cold, calculated and premeditated" and met the state's definition of "aggravating factors" warranting execution.

The defence team argued that their client was plagued by mental illness, partly as a result of being exposed to drugs and alcohol while still in his mother's womb.

Before the sentencing, some victims' family members directed their anger at the defence team, prompting public defender Melisa McNeill to unsuccessfully ask the judge to impose restrictions.

"Karma will eventually catch up to you all," said Patricia Oliver, whose son, Joaquin, was killed in the incident.

The shooting reignited the US debate over guns, and prompted a wave of youth-led activism that gained national attention, but failed to achieve its legislative goals such as a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines.