Florida school massacre suspect’s jail brawl trial delayed

By TERRY SPENCER
Associated Press

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The trial of the suspect in the 2018 Florida high school massacre for fighting a jail guard has been delayed because his lead lawyer on the case is seriously ill. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer ruled Monday that jury selection in Nikolas Cruz’s trial on jail battery charges will now begin on Tuesday and testimony will begin Oct. 19, eight days later than scheduled. Cruz’s primary public defender, David Wheeler, was hospitalized for three days with an undisclosed illness and will likely need several weeks to recover. Cruz is charged with attacking a Broward County jail guard in November 2018, nine months after he allegedly killed 14 students and three staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.