Disgraced Parkland deputy charged for inaction during school massacre
The school resource officer who failed to act during a school shooting in Florida that left 17 people dead was arrested for his lack of response on Tuesday.
Scot Peterson, a 56-year-old retired deputy, was outside of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in February 2018 while people were being slaughtered — and never bothered to enter the building.
The officer also directed other law enforcement who arrived on scene to remain 500 feet away from the building, an investigation showed.
His inaction resulted in charges of child neglect, culpable negligence and perjury. A conviction could land him in jail for nearly 100 years.
Surveillance video of the deadly debacle shows Peterson rushing toward the building with two staff members.
But when they arrive, Peterson pulled his weapon and retreated to take up a position outside.
He stood there with his gun drawn while people inside died.
The charges follow a 14-month investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which conducted interviews with 184 witnesses, reviewed hours of surveillance videos and compiled 212 investigative reports, the agency said.
Peterson “did absolutely nothing to mitigate” the shooting, FDLE Commissioner Rick Swearingen said in a statement.
“There can be no excuse for his complete inaction and no question that his inaction cost lives,” Swearingen added.
Peterson’s defense lawyer, Joseph DiRuzzo, blasted the charges as “spurious.”
“The State’s actions appear to be nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt at politically motivated retribution against Mr. Peterson,” he said in a statement to The Miami Herald on Tuesday night.
Peterson retired from the force shortly after the shooting and obtained a pension of $8,702.35 a month.
The former security staffer was booked into Broward County’s jail on Tuesday.
Lori Alhadeff, whose 14-year-old daughter, Alyssa, was killed, said she was surprised to hear of Peterson’s arrest. She recalled sending a text to her daughter when she heard there was shooting.
“I told her to hide, that help was on the way. Well, Peterson was that help, but he froze, and he failed us all that day,” Alhadeff said. “He was supposedly the good guy with the gun who was supposed to go in and meet the threat, and he let us all down.”