![Harrowing video aired at death penalty trial of US school shooter](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/e9/56/d4/Harrowing-video-aired-at-death-pena-418571.jpg)
-
Spacecraft to swing by Earth, Moon on path to Jupiter
-
What's the fallout of Mexican drug lords' capture?
-
Video game makers see actors as AI 'data,' says union on strike
-
Chinese qualifier Shang to face Thompson in ATP Atlanta semis
-
Concern grows as Venezuela blocks election observers
-
'Massive attack' on French rail threatens more chaos
-
'We did it!': France breathes sigh of relief after Olympics ceremony
-
Blinken, in Laos, set for talks with Chinese foreign minister
-
Regional concern grows as Venezuela blocks vote observers
-
Historic river parade, Dion show-stopper ignite Paris Olympics
-
Rainy Paris Olympic parade dampens many spectators' spirits
-
G20 pledges to work together to tax ultra-rich
-
The one of a kind Paris opening ceremony: five memorable moments
-
Justin Timberlake seeks to dismiss DUI case
-
Warner Brothers Discovery sues NBA over Amazon rights deal
-
Kobe Bryant locker, Maradona jersey up for auction in New York
-
Historic river parade launches Paris Olympics
-
Stocks rise as US inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
New York family of Holocaust victim reclaims Nazi-looted art
-
NASA Mars rover captures rock that could hold fossilized microbes
-
Thousands evacuate season's biggest wildfire in northern California
-
Sinaloa Cartel co-founder pleads not guilty after stunning US capture
-
Ethiopia mourns victims of landslide tragedy
-
Lady Gaga adds sparkle to star-studded Olympic show
-
Airbus and Boeing supremacy secure despite turbulence
-
Teams sail down Seine in rain-soaked Olympics opening ceremony
-
Norris hoping for more after topping Belgian practice times
-
West Indies' treble strike rocks England in third Test
-
Trump slams rivals as he meets Netanyahu in Florida
-
Olympic opening ceremony under way on River Seine
-
Mott's England future uncertain as ECB chief fails to offer support
-
Trump meets Israeli PM Netanyahu in Florida
-
S.African police say 95 Libyans detained at suspected military camp
-
Blinken set for talks with Chinese counterpart in Laos
-
Norris heads Piastri in McLaren one-two at Belgian GP practice
-
G20 seeks common ground on taxing super-rich
-
European medicines watchdog rejects new Alzheimer's drug
-
Harris gets vital Obama backing in battle against Trump
-
Habib, Ebden eye Alcaraz and Djokovic shocks at Olympics tennis
-
Stocks rise as inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
Long queues, ticketing problems ahead of Paris opening ceremony
-
Two Sinaloa Cartel leaders face US charges after stunning capture
-
Spain train driver jailed for 2.5 years over deadly 2013 crash
-
Paris poised for Olympic opening ceremony spectacular
-
Judoka fails doping test in first case at Paris Olympics
-
Holder and Da Silva keep England at bay after West Indies collapse
-
Alpine F1 boss Bruno Famin to leave in August
-
Ethiopia declares three days of mourning after landslide tragedy
-
Brazilian dunes dotted with dazzling pools make UNESCO heritage list
-
Rain, cooling slow huge blaze in Canada's Jasper park
![Harrowing video aired at death penalty trial of US school shooter](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/e9/56/d4/Harrowing-video-aired-at-death-pena-418571.jpg)
Harrowing video aired at death penalty trial of US school shooter
A harrowing video of the Valentine's Day 2018 shooting at a high school in Florida that left 17 people dead was played at the sentencing trial on Monday of the troubled young man who admitted to carrying out the massacre.
Nikolas Cruz pleaded guilty in October to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder for the attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida.
A 12-person jury is to decide whether the now 23-year-old should receive the death penalty or a life sentence for what prosecutor Mike Satz called a "cold, calculated, manipulative and deadly" massacre.
"I'm going to speak to you about the unspeakable, about this defendant's goal-directed, planned, systematic murder, mass murder, of 14 children, an athletic director, a teacher and a coach," Satz said in opening arguments.
A cell phone video recorded by a student, Danielle Gilbert, was played for the jury. The audio was made available to the public gallery and reporters.
Screams, cries and moans were punctuated by multiple shots as students huddled in their classroom trying to seek cover from bullets coming through the door.
"This can't be real," someone was heard whispering.
Gilbert, who broke down in tears as the video was played, said one person was killed in the classroom and three wounded.
Cruz, who was wearing a black Covid mask, covered his face with his hands and stared down at the table in front of him as the video was played.
Several anguished relatives of the victims fled the courtroom while others wept openly and hugged their loved ones.
- 'Next school shooter' -
Satz, the prosecutor, told the jury that three days before the shooting, Cruz made a cellphone video in which he said "I'm going to be the next school shooter of 2018.
"My goal is at least 20 people with an AR-15 and some tracer rounds," Cruz said in the video. "It's going to be a big event and when you see me on the news, you'll know who I am."
Satz said that Cruz, after fleeing the school, ordered a drink at a Subway sandwich shop and then went to a McDonald's, where he asked the brother of a girl he had just shot for a ride.
The boy, who was not aware at the time that Cruz was the assailant, declined. Cruz was arrested shortly afterwards.
The trial in Fort Lauderdale is the rare instance of a mass shooter facing a jury, as they often either take their own lives or are killed by police.
The death penalty requires the jury to be unanimous. Cruz will otherwise be handed life without parole.
The Florida shooting stunned a country accustomed to gun violence and sparked new efforts, led by students from the school itself, to get lawmakers to pass tougher gun control laws.
- 'March for Our Lives' -
Parkland survivors founded "March for Our Lives," organizing a rally that drew hundreds of thousands of people to the nation's capital, Washington, in 2018.
Thousands turned out for demonstrations organized by the group last month following two other mass shootings: one at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 children and two teachers, and another at a New York supermarket that left 10 Black people dead.
Those shootings helped galvanize support for the first significant federal bill on gun safety in decades.
President Joe Biden signed the bill into law in June but it fell far short of steps he had called for, including a ban on assault weapons.
Cruz bought the AR-15 semi-automatic he used in the attack legally, despite having a documented history of mental health problems.
Expelled from school for disciplinary reasons, Cruz was known to be fixated on firearms -- and had been identified as a potential threat to his classmates.
The Justice Department reached a $127.5 million settlement in March with survivors and relatives of Parkland victims who had accused the FBI of negligence for failing to act on tips received prior to the attack that Cruz was dangerous.
T.Bondarenko--BTB