General Former BSO Deputy Scot Peterson arrested

[Never_Rolled]

FDLE commissioner says ex-Parkland school deputy's 'inaction cost lives'

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - Disgraced former Broward Sheriff's Office Deputy Scot Peterson has been arrested for his failure to act during the Parkland school shooting that left 17 people dead and 17 others wounded, authorities announced Tuesday.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said Peterson, 56, is charged with seven counts of child neglect, three counts of culpable negligence and one count of perjury.
Tuesday's arrest comes after a 14-month investigation by the FDLE.



Peterson resigned after being suspended by now-suspended Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel shortly after the February 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

FDLE Commissioner Rick Swearingen said Peterson, a former school resource deputy, "did absolutely nothing to mitigate the MSD shooting that killed 17 children, teachers and staff and injured 17 others."

"There can be no excuse for his complete inaction and no question that his inaction cost lives," Swearingen said.

BSO spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright said Peterson was arrested Tuesday after an administrative discipline hearing at BSO headquarters.

"We cannot fulfill our commitment to always protect the security and safety of our Broward County community without doing a thorough assessment of what went wrong that day," Sheriff Gregory Tony said. "I am committed to addressing deficiencies and improving the Broward Sheriff's Office."

Tony was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, who suspended Israel shortly after taking office in January.

"I have no comment except to say, 'Rot in hell Scot Peterson,'" Fred Guttenberg, who lost his daughter, Jaime, in the shooting, wrote on Twitter. "You could have saved some of the 17. You could have saved my daughter. You did not and then you lied about it and you deserve the misery coming your way."

Broward County State Attorney Michael Satz said six of the seven child neglect charges are second-degree felonies, while the seventh charge is a third-degree felony because the child wasn't severely injured. He said the perjury and culpable negligence charges are first- and second-degree misdemeanors.

FDLE agents interviewed 184 witnesses, reviewed hours of surveillance video and wrote 212 investigative reports to determine the actions -- or inaction -- of law enforcement in the aftermath of the shooting.

"The Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting was a horrible tragedy and it is devastating to think that the loss of innocent lives of students and faculty could have been prevented," Attorney General Ashley Moody said in a statement. "As a mother, I cannot imagine the heartbreak and pain the families of the victims and the whole Parkland community have felt every day since Feb. 14, 2018. I want to thank the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and Broward (County) State Attorney's Office for investigating this tragedy and holding Scot Peterson responsible for his inaction."

Satz said Peterson's bond will be set at $102,000. Under the terms of his release, Peterson would be required to wear a GPS monitor, must surrender his passport and would be banned from possessing any firearms.

If convicted on all counts, Peterson could face more than 96 years in prison.

"For the life of me, I can't explain how anyone can stand behind a pillar for 48 minutes while innocent students and teachers are being slaughtered in a building and then somehow defend himself," Ryan Petty, who lost his daughter, Alaina, said. "This was a long time coming and I'm glad this day's finally here."

Tony also retroactively fired Peterson, along with Sgt. Brian Miller. Both were found to have neglected their duties last Valentine's Day.

"The Broward Sheriff's Office and our first responders are now better prepared and trained to respond to an active-shooter crisis," Tony said. "We have enhanced our active-shooter response protocol, increased our training staff, introduced essential equipment, established training partnerships with federal organizations and are building a regional training center."

Jeff Bell, head of the Broward Sheriff's Office Deputies Association, said the charges against Peterson are political and believes they set a dangerous precedent for other law enforcement officials.

"From the union's point of view, that concerns us because in order for that child neglect charge to be applicable you have to be a caretaker of the individual child," Bell said. "So is Deputy Peterson a caretaker of the children at that school or is he a school resource officer assigned to that school?"

Peterson's attorney, Michael Piper, who is representing him in civil cases, released a statement Tuesday, saying he has advised Peterson to hire a criminal defense attorney to represent him against the charges against him.

"Having represented law enforcement agencies and law enforcement officers in civil matters for more than 30 years, from both a legal and professional perspective, I am surprised at what has transpired today and the manner in which it has been orchestrated," Piper said. "As for the criminal charges, from the time that the chairman of the public safety commission first publicly raised the-then unfathomable specter of criminal charges, we advised Deputy Peterson to engage separate counsel to insure that his best interests were represented in that regard. Deputy Peterson did so and we defer to Deputy Peterson's criminal counsel for any comment on today's charges."


Former BSO Deputy Scot Peterson arrested

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  Former BSO Deputy Scot Peterson arrested

 

[jason73]

 

[Robbie Hart]

Good thing, fucker was paid in excess of $100,000 dollars a year after overtime taken into consideration and he was a bitch

 

[RaginCajun]

 

[Never_Rolled]

I don't think he will be convicted. The supreme court is pretty clear on this. They fudged the charges to arrest him that's why even if convicted this will be tossed on appeal I believe. I hope he is sued for everything he has but I don't see him going to prison for anything more than perjury.

 

[Thuglife13]

This^
I wish this cocksucker would get arrested too...

 

[Never_Rolled]

This^
I wish this cocksucker would get arrested too...

The good news with him is he missed getting his pension from the BSO.

 

[Sheepdog]

I don't know much about the circumstances apart from the basic summary. But as someone who would probably start picking up the kids to use as human shields while trampling over others to get out of there, can someone explain to me the legal difference between this and cops waiting for backup literally all the time in situations like these? Didn't the Vegas cops take a shitload of time to go after Stephen Paddock, for example?

I know there might be a moral difference, but surely "I was waiting for backup" is a bulletproof (see what I did there?) legal defence? Where does the line get drawn? Let's say there's 10 terrorists shooting up the school instead of one kid - are you legally obligated to run in and die?

 

[Deleted member 1]

Did the safety officer have a gun and active shooter training? If so, the implied task is his obligation to respond.

 

[Deleted member 1]

I don't think he will be convicted. The supreme court is pretty clear on this. They fudged the charges to arrest him that's why even if convicted this will be tossed on appeal I believe. I hope he is sued for everything he has but I don't see him going to prison for anything more than perjury.

I agree but what does the supreme Court say?

 

[Robbie Hart]

Did the safety officer have a gun and active shooter training? If so, the implied task is his obligation to respond.

Ex cop, so I hope so

 

[Never_Rolled]

I agree but what does the supreme Court say?

Basically the police have no duty to protect you. That's why they charged him with child neglect. They are making him out to be a caretaker. It isn't going to go anywhere in the end.

Warren v. District of Columbia - Wikipedia

Warren v. District of Columbia[1] (444 A.2d. 1, D.C. Ct. of Ap. 1981) is an oft-quoted[2] District of Columbia Court of Appeals case that held that the police do not owe a specific duty to provide police services to citizens based on the public duty doctrine.

 

[Never_Rolled]

Ex cop, so I hope so

A school resource officer is a sworn officer as any other cop is. He is just assigned to a school vs road patrol.

 

[Jesus X]

"The brave man lives until the coward wants."

 

[Jesus X]

 

[member 3289]

I don't know much about the circumstances apart from the basic summary. But as someone who would probably start picking up the kids to use as human shields while trampling over others to get out of there, can someone explain to me the legal difference between this and cops waiting for backup literally all the time in situations like these? Didn't the Vegas cops take a shitload of time to go after Stephen Paddock, for example?

I know there might be a moral difference, but surely "I was waiting for backup" is a bulletproof (see what I did there?) legal defence? Where does the line get drawn? Let's say there's 10 terrorists shooting up the school instead of one kid - are you legally obligated to run in and die?

The old wording of the BSO modus operandi during an active shooter situation said that deputies "may confront the shooter" (it has since been changed to "shall confront the shooter" but that is neither here nor there).

Based on the fact that he had an option, I think a conviction will be hard to prove in this case.

 

[kneeblock]

Seems pretty messed up. He definitely should have been fired, but no one should be arrested for being a coward. Sometimes people find out too late they just don't have it in them.

 

[Never_Rolled]

Seems pretty messed up. He definitely should have been fired, but no one should be arrested for being a coward. Sometimes people find out too late they just don't have it in them.

Not making excuses but he was set to retire within months if memory serves. They should have younger deputies assigned. They can’t take his pension also. If he doesn’t go to prison just this action will take most of what he has for a defense unless the union is footing the entire bill which they may. However many years he has left will not be good for him.

The improvements made to security are night and day. I have to go to that school a bit. They check every ID against a list for a student. 2 people at a time are let into the main office which is the only entrance/exit. Kids going into school have one entrance/exit. Multiple armed police in the office and on campus.

The sad part is the freshmen building is still up with a chainlink fence around it. It’s an eery reminder as to what happened. It’s scheduled to be demolished but that still might be even years away.

 

[Filthy]

The perjury might stick, but I think he's going to plea out to save the money and negative publicity.

But I'm pretty sure qualified immunity protects him from anything short of knowingly committing a crime.

 

[Never_Rolled]

The perjury might stick, but I think he's going to plea out to save the money and negative publicity.

But I'm pretty sure qualified immunity protects him from anything short of knowingly committing a crime.

Plea on the perjury? Many times on cases like this they won’t offer a plea. I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets a summary judgement on the other charges. He has no reputation to recover at this point. He also has never admitted to any wrongdoing. As @Sloppy Bitch pointed out they had a waiver of sorts in judgement thanks to the POS ex sheriff.

The new sheriff talks a big game about retraining but the rank and file are not happy with him and nothing has changed yet as to any of the new training.

 

[Filthy]

Plea on the perjury? Many times on cases like this they won’t offer a plea. I wouldn’t be surprised if he gets a summary judgement on the other charges. He has no reputation to recover at this point. He also has never admitted to any wrongdoing. As @Sloppy Bitch pointed out they had a waiver of sorts in judgement thanks to the POS ex sheriff.

The new sheriff talks a big game about retraining but the rank and file are not happy with him and nothing has changed yet as to any of the new training.

no, I mean he might have to eat a conviction for perjury and plea out on lesser charges.

It's a political prosecution, and everybody in BSO would love to have a single scapegoat that isn't currently with the department.
He might get a summary judgment, but it wouldn't surprise me if the DA has a judge lined-up.

 

[Never_Rolled]

no, I mean he might have to eat a conviction for perjury and plea out on lesser charges.

It's a political prosecution, and everybody in BSO would love to have a single scapegoat that isn't currently with the department.
He might get a summary judgment, but it wouldn't surprise me if the DA has a judge lined-up.

Everyone at the BSO isn't on board with this. The union president who is very well liked and respected isn't on board. Even if they had a "judge" lined up it still has to go to a jury (unless a bench trial is requested). The law isn't in their favor and I would be willing wager this would lose on appeal if it ever got kicked up. Judges have ego's and don't want to be overturned on appeal. I must be short sighted because I don't see the upside unless it's just to make his life miserable.

I'm all for making this guys life miserable. This just seems like an odd way to go about about. I've had deputies tell me in confidence they don't know what they would have done if they were in the same situation. They all aren't run into the sound of gunfire types. Most have never been in this situation and the ones that have were mostly in the military.

Thanks to the MSD commission I don't believe something like this can ever happen again down here. I could go on for hours but we have some really bad kids that aren't fixable. We have what I call jail schools. Cruz was in a couple of them. I know more than I want to about them. The teachers there aren't there to teach. They curse and act like street thugs themselves. Granted most of the kids there are going to end up dead or in prison. It sucks all the way around. They don't expel kids for the harshest of acts. They send them to these schools. They send them back even when committing crimes at these schools. This was a big part of the frustration the commission had with the school board.

 

[Filthy]

Everyone at the BSO isn't on board with this. The union president who is very well liked and respected isn't on board. Even if they had a "judge" lined up it still has to go to a jury (unless a bench trial is requested). The law isn't in their favor and I would be willing wager this would lose on appeal if it ever got kicked up. Judges have ego's and don't want to be overturned on appeal. I must be short sighted because I don't see the upside unless it's just to make his life miserable.

I'm all for making this guys life miserable. This just seems like an odd way to go about about. I've had deputies tell me in confidence they don't know what they would have done if they were in the same situation. They all aren't run into the sound of gunfire types. Most have never been in this situation and the ones that have were mostly in the military.

Thanks to the MSD commission I don't believe something like this can ever happen again down here. I could go on for hours but we have some really bad kids that aren't fixable. We have what I call jail schools. Cruz was in a couple of them. I know more than I want to about them. The teachers there aren't there to teach. They curse and act like street thugs themselves. Granted most of the kids there are going to end up dead or in prison. It sucks all the way around. They don't expel kids for the harshest of acts. They send them to these schools. They send them back even when committing crimes at these schools. This was a big part of the frustration the commission had with the school board.

I agree that the prosecution probably won't go anywhere, except the perjury. That is probably easily demonstrable with his statements under oath and the video recording. I'm assuming that this is politically motivated, and it's an attempt by the brass that's in charge now to distance themselves from their roles or association with the prior sheriff.

I doubt it goes further than a grand jury (or summary dismissal), and is a complete waste of time and money. But they do it all the time to people who aren't state employees culpable in the death of dozens of children, so IMAO it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

 

[Never_Rolled]

I agree that the prosecution probably won't go anywhere, except the perjury. That is probably easily demonstrable with his statements under oath and the video recording. I'm assuming that this is politically motivated, and it's an attempt by the brass that's in charge now to distance themselves from their roles or association with the prior sheriff.

I doubt it goes further than a grand jury (or summary dismissal), and is a complete waste of time and money. But they do it all the time to people who aren't state employees culpable in the death of dozens of children, so IMAO it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

The commission determined he couldn't have done anything when Cruz was on the first floor but he could have by the time Cruz reached the third floor. I agree he deserves all of it. On top of his inaction he lied about it and caused others not to go in.

The former sheriff tried to get his job back and state supreme court told him to kick rocks. Pretty sure if anything he wanted to just finish out his time to qualify for pension. I heard that's what he is upset about. Not sure how much you read about him. he was more worried about PR and having photo ops than actual training his people. Crime was never a priority with him as crazy as that sounds. The union rep went nuts over that issue and rightly so. He would make an excellent sheriff but he won't move to the county.

 

[Filthy]

The commission determined he couldn't have done anything when Cruz was on the first floor but he could have by the time Cruz reached the third floor. I agree he deserves all of it. On top of his inaction he lied about it and caused others not to go in.

The former sheriff tried to get his job back and state supreme court told him to kick rocks. Pretty sure if anything he wanted to just finish out his time to qualify for pension. I heard that's what he is upset about. Not sure how much you read about him. he was more worried about PR and having photo ops than actual training his people. Crime was never a priority with him as crazy as that sounds. The union rep went nuts over that issue and rightly so. He would make an excellent sheriff but he won't move to the county.

"lions don't care about the opinions of sheep." - former BSO Sheriff Scott Israel.

also, Tywin Lannister.