The Florida deputy who failed to confront the shooter at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School said he thought the gunfire was coming from outside the school.
Broward County Deputy Scot Peterson’s attorney has said his client has been unfairly described as a ‘coward’ for following protocol when he didn’t race to confront Nikolas Cruz during his fatal rampage on Valentine’s Day.
Peterson, the school resource officer, resigned last week as he faces severe criticism both from Sheriff Scott Israel and President Donald Trump.
Broward County Deputy Scot Peterson (pictured, right, with Principal Thompson) who failed to confront the shooter at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School said he thought the gunfire was coming from outside the school
Peterson has defended himself and claimed the initial report was of firecrackers, not gunshots, in the 1200 building, where Nikolas Cruz fatally shot 17 and wounded 14 others
The sheriff said Peterson should have ‘went in. Addressed the killer. Killed the killer.’
‘What I saw was a deputy arrive … take up a position and he never went in,’ the sheriff said at a news conference.
President Trump called him a coward. On Monday, he told a White House gathering of governors, ‘Look at Peterson. Look what he did in Broward where he thought he was probably a brave guy, but he wasn’t a brave guy under pressure.’
‘He choked and other people choked,’ he added.
But Peterson has defended himself and claimed the initial report was of firecrackers, not gunshots, in the 1200 building, where Cruz fatally shot 17 and wounded 14 others.
When he reached the building, he heard gunshots, but ‘believed that those gunshots were originating from outside of any of the buildings on the school campus,’ the statement said, in a quotation attributed to Peterson.
When Peterson reached the building, he heard gunshots, but ‘believed that those gunshots were originating from outside of any of the buildings on the school campus,’ the statement said, in a quotation attributed to Peterson (pictured)
In the event of outdoor gunshots, sheriff’s office training calls for deputies to ‘seek cover and assess the situation in order to communicate what one observes to other law enforcement,’ the statement said (Pictured, students flee Marjory Stoneman High School)
Peterson, the school resource officer, resigned last week as he faces severe criticism both from Sheriff Scott Israel and President Donald Trump (Pictured, students flee Marjory Stoneman High School)
In the event of outdoor gunshots, sheriff’s office training calls for deputies to ‘seek cover and assess the situation in order to communicate what one observes to other law enforcement,’ the statement said.
‘Consistent with his training, Mr Peterson ‘took up a tactical position between the 700-800 buildings corridor/corner,’ the statement said.
Joseph DiRuzzo, Peterson’s attorney, has called the sheriff’s account a ‘gross oversimplification.’
‘Let there be no mistake, Mr Peterson wishes that he could have prevented the untimely passing of the 17 victims on that day, and his heart goes out to the families of the victims in their time of need,’ he said.
‘However, the allegations that Mr Peterson was a coward and that his performance, under the circumstances, failed to meet the standards of police officers are patently