The former Broward County sheriff’s deputy responsible for guarding Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida claims he was following his training when responding to a mass shooting on February 14 that left 17 people dead.
Scot Peterson’s lawyer said in a statement Monday that any claims his client — who was armed and on campus during the shooting — was at fault for not stopping the deadly incident were a “gross oversimplification” of what actually happened that day.
“Let there be no mistake, Mr. Peterson wishes that he could have prevented the untimely passing of the 17 victims on that day, and his heart goes out to the families of the victims in their time of need,” attorney Joseph DiRuzzo claimed.
Peterson resigned on Thursday, after Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel excoriated him publicly, saying he had been “devastated, sick to his stomach” after learning that Peterson had not entered the building to confront the shooter during the attack.
DiRuzzo claimed on Monday that the deputy and a security specialist had initially responded to reports of firecrackers being set off near one of the buildings on campus and “took up a tactical position” nearby when they heard gunshots. The deputy claimed he believed at the time that the gunshots had originated outside and took cover to assess the situation.
“Radio transmissions indicated that there was a gunshot victim in the area of the football field,” the statement read. At that point, DiRuzzo said, Peterson initiated a “code red” lockdown and informed dispatchers of the gunfire.
Peterson’s account serves to complicate an already complex narrative, one which Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R) has charged the Florida Department of Law Enforcement with investigating. This week, calls began mounting for Sheriff Israel to resign after other police departments claimed that additional Broward County deputies responding to the shooting had also failed to enter the building, taking up defensive positions outside the school as well.
Israel has stated that he has no plans to resign. “I don’t think there is a man or woman in this county who can keep Broward County safer than I can. I’m proud to be the sheriff and I plan to continue on being the sheriff,” he said, in an interview with NBC News that aired on Monday.
During a meeting with the nations’ governors this week, President Trump slammed the deputies’ response, saying that “the way they performed was really a disgrace.”
“They weren’t exactly Medal of Honor winners,” he said. “… The way they performed was, frankly, disgusting.”
He added, “You don’t know until you’re tested, but I really believe I’d run in there even if I didn’t have a weapon, and I think most of the people in this room would’ve done that too.”