Attorneys want Florida school shooting confession blocked

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A judge is holding a hearing on an effort by attorneys for Florida school-shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz to block public release of parts of what police call his confession in the Valentine’s Day massacre.

The hearing Friday concerns a motion claiming that parts of the statement “will cause significant trauma to an already beleaguered community” rocked by the shooting that killed 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

The motion also says that releasing the statement would violate Cruz’s constitutional rights to a fair trial and against self-incrimination.

The 19-year-old Cruz is charged with 17 counts of first-degree murder for the Feb. 14 shooting. His lawyers say he will plead guilty in exchange for a life prison sentence but prosecutors have refused to waive the death penalty.