School discipline program spared Cruz, jeopardized students, lawyer says

April 25--A program designed to keep troubled students in school and out of jail kept police from identifying Nikolas Cruz as a threat to the community when they had the chance, according to the attorney for one of Cruz's victims.

Alex Arreaza, who filed the first lawsuit against Cruz stemming from February's mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, has already asked a Broward judge to remove both prosecutors and defense lawyers from the Cruz case because they had signed off on the school discipline agreement. Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer denied his motion, and Arreaza said Tuesday morning that he has filed an appeal of her ruling.

Arreaza represents Anthony Borges, who survived five bullet wounds in the massacre. Cruz is charged with 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder. He faces the death penalty if convicted.

In his most recent filing, the attorney cited between 23 and 39 visits from the Broward Sheriff's Office complaining about Cruz over mental health and domestic violence issues. None resulted in his arrest.

"In part because the defendant was a student within the Broward County Public School system, no law enforcement action was taken," Arreaza wrote.

According to Arreaza, Cruz was placed in the "Promise" program, which dealt with certain behaviors as school discipline issues rather than law enforcement problems.

"The end result," he wrote, "[was] a higher on-campus crime rate, higher recidivism and more federal grant money for the school district."

Broward Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie has denied previous allegations that Cruz was a part of the Promise program.

"The district has engaged an independent firm to review Cruz's education experience and the services he received," Runcie said when Borges filed his lawsuit. He said a report would be released in June.

A Broward Sheriff's Office "fact check" page on the agency's website addresses its history of calls to the Cruz home prior to the schooting.

"There were no arrestable offenses, nor was there evidence to prompt an involuntary mental health assessment," the agency reported. "The shooter was assessed several times by mental health professionals and deemed not to be a threat to himself or others."

Arreaza said he still believes the State Attorney's Office, which is prosecuting the case, and the Public Defender's Office, which represents Cruz, have a conflict of interest because of their endorsement of the school discipline agreement.

The judge ruled that as a victim in the case, Borges does not have the legal standing to demand the removal of attorneys. Arreaza's response asks the Fourth District Court of Appeal to rule that Borges does have standing. If he prevails, a hearing in Broward could be ordered to determine whether the case needs to be reassigned.

rolmeda@SunSentinel.com, 954-356-4457, Twitter @SSCourts and @rolmeda

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