A new book co-written by Andrew Pollack, the father of a teenager killed during the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas (MSD) High School in February 2018, contains a number of shocking details about the shooter Nikolas Cruz and his erratic behavior in school.
Pollack, whose 18-year-old daughter Meadow was killed in the shooting, co-wrote the new book “Why Meadow Died: The People and Policies that Created the Parkland Shooter and Endanger America’s Students” along with Max Eden.
An excerpt from the book was published in the New York Post Monday, and the details are bizarre. Here are the seven most staggering stories.
Cruz Was Caught Masturbating In School
According to the excerpt, a female student named Paige first met Cruz and he tried to give her a hug. After the hug, a teacher told Paige, “Don’t touch him. He just got caught jerking off.”
Cruz Shouted: “I Want To Kill!”
In another incident, Cruz’s eighth grade teacher Carrie Yon told him that he was a “good kid.”
In response, he yelled, “I’m a bad kid! I want to kill!”
A Teacher Wrote That Cruz Didn’t Understand The Difference Between Violent Video Games And Reality
The same teacher, Carrie Yon, wrote in a “Functional Behavioral Analysis” of Cruz that she didn’t think he “understands the difference between his violent video games and reality.”
“He is constantly showing aggressive behavior and poor judgment. His drawings in class show violent acts (people shooting at each other) or creepy sexual pictures (dogs with large penises) … I would like to see him sent to a facility that is more prepared and has the proper setting to deal with this type of child,” she wrote.
Cruz Attempted To Commit Suicide After School
As an eighth grader, Cruz reportedly tried to commit suicide by jumping into traffic. This incident was recorded by teachers as a “minor disruption.”
Cruz Was Obsessed With “Terrorist Topics” And Was An “Excessive” Gamer
After Cruz enrolled in a special school in early 2014, a psychiatrist wrote in a report that due to “excessive gaming,” the future school shooter had a preoccupation with war and terrorism.
“He goes to YouTube to research wars, military material, and terrorist topics. Wears military related items before he goes to school. Parent stated that all of these ideas are related to his excessive gaming,” Dr. Nyrma Ortiz wrote.
School Psychiatrists Warned That Cruz Has “Dreams Of Killing Others”
In a note written by Ortiz and another therapist Rona Kelly, they report that he admitted to having “dreams of killing others and [being] covered in blood.”
Despite All Of This, Cruz Was Able To Go To MSD High School And Join JROTC
Finally, the most interesting bit of information from the excerpt is that after a short period of good behavior, Cruz was sent to MSD High, and even temporarily joined the school’s Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) program.
Eden and Pollack write:
Nikolas Cruz couldn’t possibly have made himself any clearer. Broward schools staff knew exactly who and what he was. Yet they not only allowed him to enroll in Marjory Stoneman Douglas, they literally gave him an air gun, shaped like an AR-15, and let him practice shooting.
Indeed, there were many warning signs about Cruz and his potential for violence.
Immediately after the shooting, one MSD student told a local news reporter that “everyone predicted” Cruz being a shooter.
“Honestly, a lot of people were saying it was gonna be him.”
“Everyone predicted it,” a student said about the #Parkland shooting. pic.twitter.com/mbzBIw8iUa
— Vic Micolucci WJXT (@WJXTvic) February 14, 2018
Reports also indicate that the FBI was previously warned about someone posting on YouTube under the name “Nikolas Cruz,” saying he wanted to be a school shooter. (RELATED: Report: Broward School Officials ‘Did Not Follow Through’ On Nikolas Cruz’s Pleas For Help Before Massacre)
Upon being arrested, Cruz told officers that he heard “demons” and “voices.”