Parkland School Shooting: Suspect Nikolas Cruz Appears in Court as Death Penalty Trial Starts

A South Florida courtroom heard the horrifying sound of a high-powered weapon firing and the cries of children as prosecutors showed footage to a jury that will determine whether the shooter who murdered 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School four years ago should be put to death.

As recordings of the students pleading for aid were played on Monday, several of the victims' families left in fear. Some people cried while embracing one another. And the 23-year-old culprit of the entire incident dropped his head in his hands, seemingly admitting some regret for his deeds.

Parents Flee in Tears During Nikolas Cruz's Court Hearing

The entire horror and anguish of the country's mass shooting epidemic started to play out in a courthouse in Broward County, Florida, on the first day of Nikolas Cruz's sentencing trial, underscoring the idea that a community never ever heals.

The terrifying minute-by-minute chronology of Cruz's execution of one of the bloodiest school shootings in US history was presented by the prosecution when he was 19 - laying the groundwork for a painful trial that would stretch for months. He will either face the death penalty or a life sentence in jail, and a jury of seven men and five women will be asked to decide. He's already entered a guilty plea.

The trial's sentencing phase occurs while the country is still reeling from a string of mass shootings that have reignited the debate about gun control and generated outrage over the shooting deaths of people in places that are supposed to be safe, like schools. Nineteen children and two teachers were killed in a shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, in May.

The majority of shooters in high-profile shootings are either slain by police or agree to plea deals, preventing a public review of all the evidence. Cruz's sentence will provide Americans a unique glimpse into the brutality and devastation of a mass shooting by detailing the events leading up to it, The Washingtn Post via MSN reported.

Michael J. Satz, the lead prosecutor, showed a video of the shooting incidents within the classroom to the jury. The audio was heard throughout the courtroom, but only the prosecutors and jurors could see the photos. People could be heard screaming and hearing loud gunshots before someone in the gallery said, "Shut it off!"

Satz outlined the evidence of the killing that the jury would see, including the security video showing Cruz killing faculty and employees. Gina Montalto, who was waiting outside her classroom when Cruz entered the school, was one of the first pupils to be shot, as per Daily Mail.

Christopher McKenna, a student, stood outside in the first-floor corridor when Cruz decided not to fire. As Satz described the tragic scenario as students sought to flee before being shot by Cruz, trial attendees, including the relatives of some of the victims, wiped away their tears.

Parkland School Shooter's Death Penalty Trial Process

Satz described in detail how the 17 victims perished, mentioning each one by name, as Cruz remained hunched over in his seat, writing on a piece of paper and occasionally giving it to the lawyer seated next to him. The majority of the victims were shot four to six times, Satz highlighted to the jury, while Peter Wang, one of the final victims, was shot 13 times on the third level.

Melisa McNeill, the lead attorney, would probably underline in her statement that Cruz is a young adult with persistent emotional and psychological issues who allegedly experienced abuse and fetal alcohol syndrome.

It is Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer's first death penalty trial. This fall, when the jury finally hears the case, they will vote 17 times-once for each of the victims-on whether to recommend the death penalty.

Each vote must be unanimous; if any victim receives a vote that is not unanimous, the shooter would get a life sentence. The prosecution's aggravating circumstances for the victim in issue must, in the jurors' viewpoint, "outweigh" the defense's mitigating circumstances in order for them to recommend the death penalty.

Any jury may decide in favor of life in prison out of pity regardless of the facts. According to CBS News, the panel members said under oath that they are capable of voting for either penalty during jury selection.