The suspect in the Florida school shooting is reportedly set to receive an inheritance possibly topping a million dollars.
According to TV station WSVN-7, the windfall may force Nikolas Cruz to hire a private attorney and lose the taxpayer-paid public defender he has had in his court appearances so far.
The Miami Fox affiliate cited “a copy of the motion the public defender plans to file to re-determine if Cruz is indigent.”
Mr. Cruz and his brother, the motion states, are expected to get nearly $800,000 from the life-insurance policy on their mother Lynda Cruz, who died in November, plus several hundred thousand more from the sale of her home.
If he has that kind of money, Mr. Cruz would not be considered “indigent” and no longer qualify for a free lawyer from the state, WSVN reported.
On the other hand, the station reported, families of the 17 dead victims in the shooting rampage at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland could sue Mr. Cruz for that money. Such lawsuits would immediately freeze the asset, pending the cases’ outcomes.
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.