State rests case against Parkland shooter. Jury tours crime scene, hears from last families

After 12 days of heart-wrenching testimony and a jury visit to the massacre site, Broward prosecutors have rested their case against Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz.

The jury, which will decide whether Cruz is sent to Florida Death Row or will spend his life in prison, won’t convene again until Aug. 22, when the defense will begin to present witnesses and evidence. Cruz has already pleaded guilty.

Over three weeks, the state had presented a brutally detailed case of the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland. Jurors heard from scores of shaken survivors, some of whom suffered catastrophic gunshot wounds, police investigators, crime-scene technicians, and medical examiners who cataloged the devastating bullet wounds to the dead.

Read more: How a driven prosecutor is building the case to execute Parkland killer

And, perhaps most viscerally, jurors heard directly from the grieving relatives of most of the 17 murdered students and staff members. Over four days this week, they tearfully recounted tender memories, lost futures and families shattered by the violent, premature deaths of their children. The testimony was so moving that several of Cruz’s defense lawyers wept in court.

Relatives of the final three murder victims — Helena Ramsay, Peter Wang and Christopher Hixon — took to the witness stand on Thursday afternoon to give their “victim impact” statements to jurors.

Helena’s mother remembered a “beautiful, tall graceful young woman” who was athletic and loved learning. The 17-year-old was shot to death on Valentine’s Day — also her father’s birthday.

“That day will never be a celebration and can never be the same for him and is now filled with pain, as is every day,” Ann Ramsay told jurors.

The mother and two cousins of Peter Wang, who was shot to death on the third floor of the freshman building, told jurors about a dynamic 15-year-old who was part of a tight-knit Chinese immigrant family. In a statement read aloud, mother Hui Wang said she gets a tattoo to honor her son every year on the date of his death.

“To symbolize that he is with me,” she said.

The wife of Christopher Hixon, the school’s athletic director and campus monitor, told jurors that her husband’s death ended a long love story. “We made a beautiful life together,” Debbie Hixon told jurors. “I’m heartbroken that our journey ended too soon.”

Christopher Hixon was also the “best buddy” to his special-needs son, Corey. In a poignant moment, Corey — wearing a blue jacket and bow tie — told the court about getting doughnuts with his dad every Saturday.

“I miss him,” Corey said as observers in court sobbed.

On Thursday morning, jurors themselves toured the freshman building, which has been kept intact and largely untouched since the shooting. The building will eventually be demolished, after the trial.

Read more: What jurors saw at the crime scene

Court is not in session next week. On the week of Aug. 15, lawyers will argue over whether certain experts can testify about software used to purportedly diagnose brain disorders for Cruz. The defense on Aug. 22 will begin calling witnesses aimed at persuading jurors that Cruz’s mental-health woes, brain disorders and tumultuous family life should spare him the death penalty.