Armed officer at Florida school shooting 'never went inside to confront gunman'

The shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School lasted six minutes
Getty Images
Tom Powell23 February 2018

The armed officer on duty at the Florida school hit by a shooting massacre never went inside to confront the gunman and has been placed under investigation, police have announced.

The school resource officer took up a position viewing the western entrance of the building that was under attack for more than four minutes, but "he never went in", Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel said.

The officer, Scot Peterson, was suspended without pay and placed under investigation before choosing to resign.

Mr Israel said the deputy should have "went in, addressed the killer, killed the killer”.

The sheriff said that he was "devastated, sick to my stomach”.

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He added: “There are no words. I mean these families lost their children. I've been to the funerals. I've been to the vigils. There are no words.”

The Valentine's Day shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School left 17 students and teachers dead.

The suspect, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, has been jailed on 17 counts of murder and has admitted the attack.

Defence lawyers, state records and people who knew him indicate that he displayed behavioural troubles for years and he is known to have had a collection of weapons.

The attack has reignited national debate over gun laws and school safety, including proposals by president Donald Trump to trained teachers to carry firearms on school grounds.

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