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Former Broward County deputy loses appeal, civil suits to move forward in Parkland shooting

A man in a suit.
Amy Beth Bennett
/
South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP, Pool
Former Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School School Resource Officer Scot Peterson is shown in court during a motions hearing in his case at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Monday, May 22, 2022.

An appeals court has recently upheld a ruling that allowed civil lawsuits to move forward against a former Broward County sheriff’s deputy and school-resource officer.

Scot Peterson was accused of failing to properly respond during the 2018 mass shooting at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 students and faculty members were killed.

A judge rejected Peterson’s argument that a circuit judge should have granted what’s called a summary judgment in his favor. That would have ended the lawsuits and averted a potential trial.

The lawsuits were filed by victims’ family members.

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This is a News In Brief report. Visit WLRN News for in-depth reporting from South Florida and Florida news.

Sherrilyn Cabrera is WLRN's senior producer.
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