A US jury on Thursday recommended life imprisonment instead of the death penalty for Nikolas Cruz
The young man who killed 17 people and injured an equal number in the shooting he perpetrated at a Florida high school in February. of 2018.
The verdict of the 12 jurors was released at a hearing in which families of the victims of the so-called "Parkland massacre" were present.
Some were disappointed by the decision. Cruz sat hunched over showing little reaction.
The 24-year-old had already pleaded guilty to all charges and the jury had to decide his punishment.
For him to have been sentenced to death, there had to be a unanimous decision beyond reasonable doubt.
The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School attack is the deadliest mass shooting to come to trial with the perpetrator present in the US.
On February 14, 2018, when many celebrate Valentine's Day, 17 people were killed in Cruz's shooting attack . Another 17 people were injured.
The incident began at 2:19 p.m. when Cruz, who had been expelled the previous year for disciplinary reasons, arrived on campus armed with a legally purchased AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and fatally shot 14 students and three school employees .
The attacker managed to leave the school by mingling with the students and stayed in the area after, according to the investigation, he went to buy a soda at a nearby restaurant.
Shortly after, around 3:40 pm, he was arrested by police officers about 3 km from the school.
Nikolas Cruz's defense argued during the trial that the young man has suffered from mental problems since he was a child.
The jury decided that he will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
His guilt was never in doubt, but after a day of deliberation, those 12 people agreed that while he was eligible for the death penalty, he had mental health disorders from the time he was born.
Cruz has avoided the death penalty, but he will never get out of jail.