NewsNationalDemocracy 2018

Actions

Florida school shooting defendant registered to vote in jail

Posted at 8:34 AM, Nov 12, 2018
and last updated 2018-11-12 18:49:22-05

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) - The man accused of gunning down 17 people at a Florida high school registered to vote while behind bars awaiting trial.
  
The SunSentinel reports Nikolas Cruz registered as a Republican on July 25. He's charged with 17 counts of first-degree murder and 17 counts of attempted murder for the Valentine's Day massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
  
Andrew Pollack, the father of a victim, tweeted Saturday that he's "sick to his stomach" Cruz was allowed to register in jail and criticized Broward Sheriff Scott Israel for allowing it. But Cruz hasn't been convicted of a crime and was eligible to vote this year.
  
Sheriff's spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright says the supervisor of elections controls the process. Once inmates are registered, absentee ballots are mailed to them in jail.

(Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)