‘Justice they deserve’: Parkland victim’s father supports proposed death penalty changes
On Wednesday, Tony Montalto stood in front of Florida lawmakers and urged them to pass a bill that would make it easier for juries to hand out death sentences.
Montalto lost his daughter Gina, 14, in the 2018 Parkland school shooting. Seventeen students and educators were killed and another 17 injured in the attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
The House bill Montalto supports would change the requirement that juries must be unanimous to recommend the death penalty. If passed, at least eight jurors recommending the death penalty would bind the court to the sentence.
There are currently three other bills related to death sentences moving through the House and Senate. One would grant judges more power by allowing them to overturn a jury’s decision with proper review.
READ MORE: After Parkland case, sentencing for death penalty cases may change. Here’s what to know
The foreman of the 12-person jury that recommended Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz be sentenced to life in prison said three jurors voted against the death penalty, a move that outraged victims’ parents and loved ones.
“This bill is about victims’ rights,” Montalto said in the hearing. “Sadly, my family has seen how a jury can be misled into denying justice for the victims.”
Montalto described the jury’s decision as a “tragic failure,” citing that jurors sentenced the shooter to life even though he pulled the trigger close to 140 times.
“A single juror who wrote a note to the judge stopped the deliberation process,” Montalto said. “This bill will prevent that from happening, from allowing a single activist juror to disrupt the justice system.”
The jury foreman said a single juror was the main catalyst against death penalty, pointing at mental health issues. Under fire from others on the jury, one of the jurors who voted for life sent a letter to the judge, denying accusations that she had made up her mind before the trial.
For Montalto, the proposal would provide better opportunity for justice.
“My daughter Gina, her classmates and her teachers deserve justice,” Montalto said. “This bill will allow future victims of atrocious, cruel and heinous crimes to get the justice they deserve as the perpetrators are punished to the fullest extent of the law.”
This story was originally published March 16, 2023 at 4:00 PM.
