Statement By:
Jennifer Fennell, Marsy’s Law for Florida Spokesperson
Regarding Parkland/Nikolas Cruz Pre-trial Hearing and Crime Victims’ Rights
“Marsy’s Law for Florida commends the Broward County State Attorney’s Office and Prosecutor Carolyn McCann for defending the constitutional rights of crime victims during the high-profile pre-trial hearing for Nikolas Cruz who will soon be on trial for the murder of 17 people.
The defense has filed a motion to limit the number of victim impact statements jurors would hear. Under Marsy’s Law for Florida, all crime victims have the right to be heard during court proceedings. We applaud Prosecutor McCann for arguing that crime victims have a right to be heard under the Florida Constitution and that the court should not ‘be abridging their constitutional rights for the interest of brevity.’
Thank you, Prosecutor McCann, for fighting the good fight. We hope Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer will uphold this right when she rules on this motion.”
About Marsy’s Law
Marsy’s Law is named after Marsalee “Marsy” Nicholas of California who was stalked and killed by her ex-boyfriend in 1983. Only one week after her death, Marsy’s mother and brother, Henry T. Nicholas, walked into a grocery store where they were confronted by the accused murderer. The family, who had just come from a visit to Marsy’s grave, was unaware that the accused had been released on bail. In an effort to honor his sister, Dr. Nicholas, co-founder of Broadcom Corporation, has made it his mission to give victims and their families constitutional protections and equal rights. He formed Marsy’s Law for All in 2009, providing expertise and resources to victims’ rights organizations nationwide.
