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The first witness to the prosecution of the school shooter Nikolas Cruz in the the penalty phase trial was a teacher. The instructor, Brittany Sinitich, survived the 2018 Parkland massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Brittany Sinitch spoke about the terrifying event that caused her to develop post-traumatic stress disorder in a Broward County courtroom in Fort Lauderdale. She said in court on Monday:
"We were writing Valentine's Day cards"
Brittany Sinitch is the first witness to the prosecution of Nikolas Cruz
Reportedly, Brittany Sinitch was the first witness to testify againt the Parkland shooter, Nikolas Cruz. She said that she began her teaching career in 2017 when she was a 22-year-old. Sinitch works as a teacher at the same school she graduated from.
As technical difficulties surfaced in the first few minutes after Sinitch took the stand, the start of her evidence had to be delayed. Meanwhile, Cruz's defense team asked for a 45-day post-ponement, citing the retirement of one of its crucial witnesses.
Sinitch said that she was teaching freshman English in classroom 1218 and her students were studying "Romeo and Juliet." Shortly into it, the whole class heard a loud gunshot.
The teacher described what they felt that day as:
"You could just feel it withing your body; all throughout my chest."
Citing the Parkland school shooting, she noted that Nikolaz Cruz randomly masscared 17 students and injured 17 others in the school. Although none of her students were hurt, the instructor kept having flashbacks.
She said:
"As Cruz fired his AR-15, a student made sure the door was shut. I had some of them behind my back."
Sinitch began to break down and cry when Assistant State Attorney Mike Satz played her 911 call aloud in the courtroom. The instructor had to take a year off in order to recover from the trauma.
She established The Unbreakable Organization, a nonprofit dedicated to assisting people in recovering from trauma.
Nikolaz Cruz sentencing hearing began on June 18, 2022
Monday marked the start of the Parkland, Florida, school shooter's sentencing hearing at the Broward County Courthouse. It was incredibly emotional for the victims' and survivors' families.
In what is known as the bloodiest mass shooting trial in American history, Nikolas Cruz entered a guilty plea in October. The now 23-year-old entered a guilty plea to 17 counts of first-degree murder in the 2018 massacre at Parkland's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Reportedly, Nikolas Cruz will either receive the death penalty or a life sentence without the chance of parole, depending on the verdict of the jury. His case might take up to four months to reach the penalty phase.
Seven witnesses were put to the witness stand after the prosecution finished its opening statement. The families of the victims who were present in court experienced emotional outbursts as videos from inside classrooms during the massacre were aired.
