nikolas cruz

The confessed Parkland shooter was in a Broward County courtroom Tuesday for a hearing. 

Defense attorneys for the confessed Parkland school shooter are warning that there could be drawbacks to starting his trial early next year.

Last week, Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer ordered prosecutors and Nikolas Cruz’s defense to be ready for jury selection by Jan. 27. But during a pre-trial hearing on Wednesday, defense attorneys said they need more time to finish interviewing witnesses and other preparations.

A date has been set for trial in the case of confessed Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz versus the State of Florida. 

Judge Elizabeth Scherer issued an order on Thursday announcing the pretrial motions will begin on January 13, 2020 and jury selection will start on January 27. 

"In February, 2019, this Court put all parties on notice that the trial in this matter would commence in January, 2020," the order states. 

The confessed-Parkland school shooter, Nikolas Cruz, had a bandage across the bridge of his nose as he stood and raised his handcuffed hand to address a Broward County Courtroom on Wednesday afternoon. 

Cruz spoke for himself under oath, instead of letting his team of public defenders speak for him as he has done in the past. He told Judge Elizabeth Scherer that he waives his right to be  present at future status hearings about his case, though he may have to be present at more substantive hearings.

Attorneys defending Nikolas Cruz are hoping to speak to people from Henderson Behavioral Health about their impressions while treating Cruz in years prior to the 2018 Parkland school shooting. 

Inside the courtroom the defense argued that if they are unable to speak with witnesses informally - that means without the state present - they would be “ineffective” in representing him against the death penalty. 

Attorneys for the confessed Parkland school shooter and Florida prosecutors continued to disagree on Friday over the state’s pace of releasing evidence to the defense.

During a status hearing with Nikolas Cruz present, public defender Melisa McNeill complained that Florida has not turned over all requested police body camera footage and other information from investigations related to the shooting. Prosecutors countered, saying the state has released all of the requested evidence it has.

A Broward County judge wants the case against the confessed Parkland school shooter to head to trial in January 2020. 

Nikolas Cruz, 20, faces the death penalty if convicted of 17 counts of first-degree murder for the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, 2018. He's been charged with another 17 counts of attempted murder.

The legal team defending the confessed-Parkland shooter argued in front of a Broward Circuit judge Friday morning that the state commission investigating the shooting should not have had access to Nikolas Cruz's confidential medical and mental health records. 

The team of public defenders, led by attorney Melisa McNeill, asked Judge Elizabeth Scherer to hold the Broward Sheriff's Office in contempt of court for releasing Cruz's confidential medical and mental health records to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Commission. 

A Broward judge has refused to set a trial date for the case against the confessed Parkland school shooter, despite state prosecutors' calls for closure on the case. 

Nikolas Cruz, who's facing the death penalty for the school massacre that killed 17 people last Valentine's Day, appeared in court on Tuesday for a routine status hearing. Prosecutors argued the case is fairly straightforward and that Cruz's defense has enough evidence to move forward with a trial.