Crimes and Courts
School shooter’s brain exams to be subject of court hearing
Published
4 years agoon
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A defense mental health expert in the penalty trial of Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz can pinpoint when he realized the 23-year-old mass murderer still has “irrational thoughts” — the two were making small talk when Cruz began describing plans for an eventual life outside prison.
Wesley Center, a Texas counselor, said that happened last year at the Broward County jail as he fitted Cruz’s scalp with probes for a scan to map his brain. The defense at hearings this week will try to convince Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer that Center and other experts should be allowed to testify at Cruz’s ongoing trial about what their tests showed, something the prosecution wants barred.
“He had some sort of epiphany while he was in (jail) that would focus his thoughts on being able to help people,” transcripts show Center told prosecutors during a pretrial interview this year. “His life’s purpose was to be helping others.”
Cruz, of course, will never be free. Since his arrest about an hour after he murdered 14 students and three staff members at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018, there has never been any doubt his remaining years would be behind bars, sentenced to death or life without parole. Surveillance video shows him mowing down his victims with an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle and he confessed, eventually pleading guilty in October.
Prosecutors made their argument for death to the seven-man, five-woman jury and 10 alternates over three weeks, resting their case Aug. 4 after the panel toured the still-bloodstained, bullet-pocked classroom building where the massacre happened.
The jurors also watched graphic surveillance videos; saw gruesome crime scene and autopsy photos; received emotional testimony from teachers and students who witnessed others die; and heard from tearful and angry parents, spouses and other family members about the victims and how their loved one’s death impacted their lives. They watched video of the former Stoneman Douglas student calmly ordering an Icee minutes after the shooting and, nine months later, attacking a jail guard.
Soon, it will be Cruz’s attorneys arguing why he should be spared, hoping to convince at least one juror their mitigating factors outweigh the prosecution’s aggravating circumstances — a death sentence must be unanimous.
But first, the trial took last week off to accommodate some jurors’ requests to deal with personal matters. The jury will also be absent this week as the sides argue before Scherer, who will decide whether brain scans, tests and other evidence the defense wants to present starting Aug. 22 is scientifically valid or junk, as the prosecution contends.
Center’s test and its findings will be subject to contentious debate. Called a “quantitative electroencephalogram” or “qEEG,” its backers say it provides useful support to such diagnoses as fetal alcohol syndrome, which Cruz’s attorneys contend created his lifelong mental and emotional problems.
EEGs have been common in medicine for a century, measuring brainwaves to help doctors diagnose epilepsy and other brain ailments. But the qEEG analysis, which has been around since the 1970s, goes a step farther — a patient’s EEG results are compared to a database of brainwaves taken from normal or “neurotypical” people. While qEEG findings cannot be used to make a diagnosis, they can support findings based on the patient’s history, examination, behavior and other tests, supporters contend.
A “qEEG can confirm what you already know, but you can’t create new knowledge,” Center told prosecutors in his interview.
Dr. Charles Epstein, an Emory University neurology professor, reviewed Center’s findings for the prosecution. In a written statement to Scherer, he said EEGs using only external scalp probes like the one given Cruz are imprecise, making Center’s qEEG results worthless.
“Garbage in, garbage out,” he wrote.
Florida judges have given mixed rulings about allowing qEEGs since 2010, when the test helped a Miami-area man escape a death sentence for fatally stabbing his wife and severely wounding her mentally disabled 11-year-old daughter. Some judges have since allowed their admission, while others barred them. Scherer, who is overseeing her first death penalty trial, has never had a case where the defense tried to present a qEEG report.
Even if Scherer bars the test, lead defense attorney Melisa McNeill and her team still have evidence that Cruz’s brain likely suffered damage in the womb, including statements by his late birth mother that she abused alcohol and cocaine during pregnancy.
They also have reports giving circumstantial evidence of his mental illness. Cruz got kicked out of preschool for hurting other children. During his years in public school, he spent significant time at a center for students with emotional issues. He also received years of mental health treatment.
Then there are his life circumstances. Cruz’s adoptive father died in front of him when he was 5; he was bullied by his younger brother and his brother’s friends; he was allegedly abused sexually by a “trusted peer;” he cut himself and abused animals; and his adoptive mother died less than four months before the shooting.
His youth will also be an issue — he was 19 when the shooting happened.
Attorneys not involved in the case say if Scherer wants to avoid having a possible death sentence overturned on appeal, she should give the defense wide latitude on what it presents so jurors can fully assess his life and mental health.
“If it’s a close call, I think she is going to bend to the defense — and the prosecution is not going to be happy,” said David S. Weinstein, a Miami criminal defense lawyer and former prosecutor.
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Central Florida News
Orlando Police Arrest Three Following Shooting at West Lakes Apartment Complex
Published
2 weeks agoon
July 10, 2026
ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN NEWS) — Orlando Police arrested three suspects Thursday following a shooting at the Pendana at West Lakes Club Apartments that led to a high-speed pursuit spanning Orange and Seminole counties.
Police said no injuries were reported despite multiple rounds being fired during the incident.
Shooting Reported at Apartment Complex
According to the Orlando Police Department (OPD), officers responded at approximately 3:50 p.m. Thursday, July 9, to the 2000 block of Orange Center Boulevard after receiving reports of gunfire at the Pendana at West Lakes Club Apartments.
During the investigation, detectives reviewed surveillance video showing occupants of a black sedan and a black SUV firing multiple rounds at two individuals riding scooters through the apartment complex.
Investigators said everyone involved fled the scene before officers arrived.
Police Locate Suspect Vehicles
Shortly after the shooting, Orlando officers located both suspect vehicles in the North Pine Hills area.
With assistance from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO), officers conducted a traffic stop on the black sedan and detained two suspects without incident.
Officers later located the black SUV and attempted a traffic stop, but the driver refused to stop, triggering a police pursuit.
Helicopter Assists During Pursuit
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office Aviation Unit tracked the fleeing SUV from the air while directing responding officers on the ground.
The pursuit ended in Altamonte Springs, where the driver stopped in front of a Burlington Coat Factory, abandoned the vehicle and attempted to flee on foot.
Orlando Police officers quickly apprehended the suspect.
Three Suspects Arrested
Police identified the suspects as:
Jacorey Lowery (DOB: July 8, 2006)
Charges:
- Attempted Felony Murder (Firearm/Discharge)
- Discharging a Firearm at Residential Property
Quincy Desponosse (DOB: April 21, 2008)
Charge:
- Principal to Attempted First-Degree Murder
Semaj Blackshear
Charges:
- Principal to Attempted Felony Murder with a Firearm
- Fleeing and Eluding Law Enforcement at High Speed with Disregard for Public Safety or Property
- Resisting an Officer Without Violence
- Juvenile Violation of Probation
None of the Suspects Lived at the Complex
Investigators determined that none of the three individuals arrested were residents of the Pendana at West Lakes Club Apartments.
Police have not released information regarding a possible motive or whether the suspects knew the two individuals on the scooters.
Investigation Continues
The Orlando Police Department said the investigation remains active.
Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to contact the Orlando Police Department or Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS (8477).
Crimes and Courts
Attorney General Uthmeier Announces Charges Against Six in South Florida Drug Trafficking Enterprise
Published
1 month agoon
June 13, 2026
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FNN NEWS) — Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced charges against six individuals accused of participating in a multi-county drug trafficking enterprise operating in Broward County and surrounding areas of South Florida.
The defendants — Isaac Lakeith Bruton, Wayne Morgan Brutton Jr., Wayne Morgan Brutton Sr., Omar Dwayne Cooper, Rene Danger Jr., and Cleon Fabian Reid — are accused of participating in an organized criminal enterprise that allegedly distributed large quantities of illegal narcotics and laundered proceeds from drug sales.
Investigation Spanned Multiple Agencies
According to the Attorney General’s Office, the charges stem from a joint investigation led by the Broward Sheriff’s Office Organized Crime Unit and the Office of Statewide Prosecution, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office.
“This joint investigation dismantled a criminal enterprise that pumped dangerous drugs into Florida communities,” Uthmeier said in a statement. “Through the tireless work of the Office of Statewide Prosecution and our great law enforcement partners, we are taking on more criminal prosecutions than ever before.”
Alleged Drug Trafficking Operation
Investigators allege the organization obtained and distributed kilogram quantities of cocaine, multiple pounds of marijuana, prescription pills and other controlled substances throughout South Florida.
According to authorities, members of the enterprise converted powdered cocaine into crack cocaine near distribution locations and utilized vehicles equipped with hidden compartments to transport narcotics.
The investigation further alleges that Bruton and Cooper laundered proceeds from drug sales through the purchase of vehicles, real estate, business investments, classic car restorations and jewelry.
Charges Filed
Bruton and Cooper are each charged with:
- Racketeering (First-Degree Felony)
- Conspiracy to Commit Racketeering (First-Degree Felony)
- Money Laundering (Third-Degree Felony)
Brutton Jr., Brutton Sr., Danger Jr., and Reid are each charged with:
- Racketeering (First-Degree Felony)
- Conspiracy to Commit Racketeering (First-Degree Felony)
Potential Penalties
If convicted, Bruton and Cooper face up to 75 years in prison. Brutton Jr., Brutton Sr., Danger Jr., and Reid each face up to 60 years in the Florida Department of Corrections.
The case will be prosecuted by Assistant Statewide Prosecutors Jillian Tate and Nicholas Kaleel.
Presumption of Innocence
All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Crimes and Courts
Florida Creates Public Assistance Fraud Task Force, Appoints Special Prosecutor to Crack Down on Fraud
Published
3 months agoon
April 15, 2026
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (FNN) — James Uthmeier announced the launch of the Public Assistance Fraud Task Force, a multi-agency initiative aimed at strengthening investigations and prosecutions of fraud involving taxpayer-funded benefit programs.
As part of the effort, Assistant Statewide Prosecutor Scott Strauss has been appointed as special prosecutor to oversee complex, multi-circuit fraud cases and coordinate legal strategies across agencies.
TASK FORCE TO TARGET FRAUD
The task force is designed to provide legal counsel and streamline criminal prosecutions for state agencies and law enforcement, enhancing Florida’s ability to build strong cases against individuals accused of fraud.
“We are launching this task force to bring accountability and prosecute those who are stealing from Floridians,” Uthmeier said. “Florida is not Minnesota or California, and we will safeguard the taxpayers’ investment in the services meant for the vulnerable.”
MULTI-AGENCY COLLABORATION
State leaders emphasized the importance of coordination across agencies to combat increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes.
“Under the leadership of Governor Ron DeSantis and Attorney General Uthmeier, Florida has continued to identify, address, and prevent fraud,” said Shevaun L. Harris, secretary of the Agency for Health Care Administration. “This multi-agency initiative creates an opportunity to collectively reaffirm that commitment.”
Brad McVay added that protecting taxpayer-funded programs is essential to maintaining public trust.
“Floridians deserve a government that safeguards their taxpayer dollars from fraudsters,” McVay said.
Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Mark Glass also stressed enforcement.
“If you commit fraud against public assistance programs, you will be held accountable,” Glass said.
ROLE OF SPECIAL PROSECUTOR
The special prosecutor will evaluate and oversee ongoing multi-circuit investigations, assist in developing cases for prosecution, and support law enforcement with legal tools such as warrants and affidavits.
Kathleen Von Hoene said the initiative will strengthen protections for vulnerable populations.
“Our goal is to protect the public, preserve the integrity of the Medicaid program, and safeguard the populations it serves,” she said.
PROGRAMS AND ENFORCEMENT
Florida’s public assistance programs include Medicaid, SNAP, WIC, housing assistance and reemployment services. Fraud involving these programs can result in criminal charges ranging from misdemeanors to felonies, with penalties including fines, restitution and incarceration.
Law enforcement agencies interested in participating in the task force can contact the Office of Statewide Prosecution for more information.
