Who Is Scot Peterson? Parkland Shooting Deputy Charged With 11 Counts Over Negligence

Scot Peterson, the Broward County Sheriff's Deputy condemned as a coward for not facing the teenager who shot dead 17 students at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas (MSD) High School in Parkland, Florida on Feb. 14, 2018, was arrested Tuesday. He faces 11 criminal charges.

Peterson, who was a school resource officer on the day of the shooting, was charged with child neglect, culpable negligence and perjury in connection with the shooting, said the State Attorney's Office. He was booked into Broward County Jail following a 14 month-long investigation. His bail will be set at $102,000.

If convicted, Peterson faces the possibility of spending more than 96 years in state prison.

A Public Safety Commission report about the shootings published in January found Peterson didn't enter the building where the shootings took place. Instead, he hid for 48 minutes at the base of a stairwell after the first shots were fired.

"The FDLE (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) investigation shows former Deputy Peterson did absolutely nothing to mitigate the MSD shooting," said Commissioner Rick Swearingen. "There can be no excuse for his complete inaction and no question that his inaction cost lives."

Family members of the victims and those present at yesterday’s public safety commission meeting cheered the announcement.

The father of Jaime Guttenberg, one of the slain students, asserts Peterson could have saved lives if he had chosen to enter the building.

"I have no comment except to say rot in hell, Scot Peterson," said Fred Guttenberg. "You could have saved some of the 17. You could have saved my daughter. You did not and then you lied about it and you deserve the misery coming your way."

Peterson was fired from his job Tuesday at a disciplinary hearing by new Sheriff Gregory Tony. Also fired was Sgt. Brian Miller, a supervisor on the day of the shooting, said the sheriff's office.

Eight days after the attack, Peterson was suspended without pay by former Sheriff Scott Israel. At the time, Israel said "Scot Peterson was absolutely on campus for this entire event." He said Peterson should have "(gone) in, addressed the killer, (and) killed the killer.”

Israel, however, also drew heavy criticism for the flawed police response to the shooting. Israel's deputies, including Peterson, were criticized for staying outside Building 12 where the shootings occurred and not immediately confronting Nikolas Cruz in accordance with police procedures.

Several police officers that responded to the shooting later resigned. Israel himself was suspended by Governor Ron DeSantis last January, largely as a result of his conduct at Parkland. He was later replaced by Tony.

The Parkland massacre is the deadliest high school shooting in United States history, surpassing the Columbine High School massacre in Colorado that killed 13 persons on April 20, 1999. Seventeen other people were wounded at Columbine.

Video of the Parkland shooting shows Peterson, armed and in uniform, idling outside Building 12 when the shootings began. Peterson's lawyer said he believed the shooting was taking place outside the building, hence his refusal to enter the building.

This account, which Peterson first made to the first Coral Springs police officer who arrived on scene, was belied by later evidence.