Skip to content
Link copied to clipboard

Fla. public defender wants to drop Parkland massacre suspect, citing insurance payout

The public defenders representing the suspect in last year's Florida high school massacre have made an unexpected request to withdraw from the case, saying he will soon receive $432,000 from his late mother's life insurance policy.

FILE - Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz looks towards the prosecution table during a hearing at the Broward Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Friday, April 5, 2019. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel / TNS)
FILE - Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz looks towards the prosecution table during a hearing at the Broward Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Friday, April 5, 2019. (Amy Beth Bennett / South Florida Sun Sentinel / TNS)Read moreAmy Beth Bennett / MCT
    by Terry Spencer, The Associated Press
    Published 

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The public defenders representing the suspect in last year’s Florida high school massacre have made an unexpected request to withdraw from the case, saying the man will soon receive nearly a half-million dollars from his late mother’s life insurance policy.

The Broward County Public Defender's Office filed a notice late Wednesday saying Nikolas Cruz is set to receive more than $432,000. Under state law, the public defender can only represent defendants who cannot afford private attorneys.

Public Defender Howard Finkelstein said his office learned about the policy this week.

It’s likely that the victims’ families who are suing Cruz for the Feb. 14, 2018, Marjory Stoneman Douglas High shooting that left 17 dead will make a claim for the money. Judges will have to determine who gets it.