On February 14, 2018: Nikolas Cruz, 19, who had never been arrested or had a criminal record until this Valentine’s Day, went to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, pulled an AR-15 from a black duffle bag, and began gunning down former classmates and teachers, killing at least 17 people and injuring 15 others.[1]

The following is a time line—gleaned from media reports—about the shocking failure of the psychiatric-psychological-behavioral system to predict or prevent this tragedy, despite billions of dollars invested in it. Mental health budget cuts didn’t cause Cruz to commit murder. Pouring millions more dollars into the system will not prevent similar incidents from happening again, because the system is fundamentally flawed, the treatment offered is frequently harmful and a percentage of those taking psychotropic drugs prescribed to them may drive them to acts of violence or suicide. Psychotropic drugs, or withdrawal from them, do not excuse the crime, but they may explain a frame of mind that can drive some—not all—to commit such heinous acts.

Prior to the Florida school shooting, at least 37 school shootings and/or school-related acts of violence have been committed by those taking or withdrawing from psychiatric drugs resulting in 172 wounded and 80 killed (in other school shootings, information about their drug use was not always made public—neither confirming nor refuting if the killers were under the influence of prescribed drugs or had undergone other behavioral therapy.)[2]

At least 27 international drug regulatory agency warnings have been issued on psychiatric drugs linking them to mania, violence, hostility, aggression, psychosis, and homicidal ideation (thoughts or fantasies of homicide that can be planned).[3]

Training teachers and others in “detecting” mental illness is not a deterrent. Even an American Psychiatric Association (APA) task force report admitted, “Psychiatric expertise in the prediction of ‘dangerousness’ is not established….”[4] Stephen D. Hart, a psychologist at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver stated: “There is no instrument that is specifically useful or validated for identifying potential school shooters or mass murderers.”[5] While David Kirschner, Ph.D., a New York forensic psychologist who has tested and/or evaluated 30 teenage and young adult murderers, pointed out that “almost all of them had been in some kind of ‘treatment,’ usually short term and psychoactive drug-oriented, before they killed.”[6]

Diagnosed with a “mental disorder” does not mean that the person has a higher potential to become violent than someone not so labeled. A review of scientific literature published in Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry regarding the “astonishing rate” of mental illness over the past 50 years revealed that it’s not “mental illness” causing the problem, but, rather, the psychiatric drugs prescribed to treat it.[7] Since the introduction of antipsychotics in 1955 and the newer Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI) antidepressants, like Prozac, in 1987, both have been linked to causing aggressive or violent effects.

When a school or other mass shooting occurs, the first questions shouldn’t be: “‘Is the perpetrator mentally ill?’ or “Did he stop taking his medication causing his illness to re-occur?” Rather, it should be “Is the person responsible for taking a psychiatric drug that could be causing homicidal adverse effects while on or withdrawing from it?”

Time Line: Nikolas Cruz

Born September 24, 1988

1991: School records showed Nikolas Cruz was first identified as developmentally delayed when he was three years old. Cruz’s later school disciplinary records showed he attended at least six schools, including Cross Creek School, a school for students with emotional problems; Dave Thomas Education Center, an alternative high school for at-risk youth; and an adult education center.[8]

1994: At age 6, he started psychiatric treatment and was prescribed drugs to treat “ADHD.”[9]

Frederick M. Kravitz, a clinical psychologist, met Cruz when he was a first-grade student, at age 8 and his adopted mother sought help for him. While treating him for ADHD and the dubious “oppositional defiance disorder,” Kravitz said he believed Cruz also exhibited symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder and autism spectrum disorder.[10]

1999: At age 11, Cruz had another therapist, Caridad Harvey, who worked with Cruz and his family. [11]

2008-2011: Psychiatrist Laurie Karpf treated Cruz and prescribed the antipsychotic Risperdal, the stimulant Focalin, and the antidepressant, Strattera (for ADHD) when he was a third-grade student. She adjusted the dosage to deal with side effects and later removed Strattera.[12]

2009-2010: Paul Gold lived next door to the Cruz family and recently told media: “He had emotional problems and I believe he was diagnosed with autism.  He had trouble controlling his temper. He broke things. He would do that sometimes at our house when he lost his temper. But he was always very apologetic afterwards.” Gold added: “He would sometimes be hitting his head and covering his ears.”[13]

2010-November 2016: Broward County sheriff’s deputies responded to at least 36 emergency 911 calls from the home where Cruz lived with his younger brother, Zachary, and adoptive mother, Lynda.[14]

2011-2013: Jessica Clark Flournoy was Cruz’s counselor at the West Glades Middle School in Parkland and testified in 2022 that Cruz behaved in her counseling sessions and never spoke of his fascination with guns to her. Flournoy met with Cruz once a week as a counselor but was not present in the classroom when he displayed bad behavior. A functional behavioral assessment was completed by another behavioral specialist at the school. It detailed how Cruz drew pictures of shooting victims and asked what it sounded like when Abraham Lincoln was shot dead. On another day, the expert report stated, “Nikolas will find any excuse to bring up guns.”[15]

August 2012: Lynda Cruz called the police saying 14-year-old Nikolas had refused to go to school that day, so she took away his Xbox “privileges” and stashed the computer game system in her vehicle. That enraged her son, who “retaliated and threw a chair, dog bowl and a drinking glass across the room.” Mrs. Cruz told police that Nikolas had a “history of developmental and learning disabilities,” was “increasingly irate” and suffered from “ADHD.” Police placed the teen in handcuffs and sat him in the back of the police car while they interviewed Mrs. Cruz. Nina Barela, a counselor from the nearby Henderson Behavioral Health facility, where Cruz was a client for years, arrived at the home and “gave Nikolas his prescribed medication.” Broward County deputy Gary Michalosky was called to Cruz’s home over reports of a domestic disturbance from Cruz being upset that his adoptive mother locked his Xbox in the trunk of her car. By the time the deputy arrived, the floor was littered with things the teen had thrown against the wall, including a now-shattered vase and a broken bowl. There were holes in the walls of Cruz’s bedrooms from previous tantrums, he said. They escorted Cruz out of the room in handcuffs, and the boy was calm, flat. Not talkative. “No emotions,” Michalosky said.[16]

2012: When Cruz was 13, he was disciplined for being disobedient and unruly.[17]

2012-2017: Dr. Brett J. Negin, a psychiatrist who treated Cruz from 2012 to August 14, 2017, testified in 2022 that Cruz had a history of ADHD and was taking two medications daily: 20 mg of Focalin XR, a stimulant with long-acting extended release, and .25 mg of Risperdal, an antipsychotic. His mother complained of her son’s “irritability” (aggressive behavior and agitation are side effects of Risperdal[18]) and Dr. Negan doubled the dosage of Risperdal to treat ADHD.[19] (Risperdal is not FDA-approved to treat ADHD.) Negin then prescribed clonidine, a “non-stimulant” drug to treat Cruz’s impulsiveness.[20] Clonidine side effects include anxiety and mental depression,[21] while Focalin can cause nervousness, restlessness, anxiety, feeling jittery, and mental/mood/behavior changes (such as agitation, aggression, mood swings, abnormal thoughts, thoughts of suicide).[22]

January 15, 2013: Deputies responded to a call that Cruz threw his mother against the wall because she took away his video games. She told police on different occasions that her son suffered from ADHD, OCD, and anger issues. A Henderson Behavioral Health counselor said hospitalization for mental health evaluation was not warranted for Cruz.[23]

2013: Records suggested he was counseled for making a false 911 call.[24]

When Cruz was a student at Westglades Middle School, he was constantly in trouble for insulting teachers and staff, using profanity, disruptive behavior, unexcused absences and at least one fight. His mother was called in more than a dozen times for conferences and Cruz was frequently sent to counseling. In September 2013, he received an internal suspension from the school for unruly/disruptive behavior.[25]

February 6, 2014: Cruz transferred from Westglades Middle School to Cross Creek, an alternative school for developmentally disabled and students with behavior problems.[26]

June 5, 2014: Dr. Nyrma N. Ortiz, a Broward County Public Schools psychiatrist, and Rona O’Connor Kelly, the school therapist, signed a two-page letter dated June 5, 2014, and addressed it to Dr. Negin to warn him that Cruz had a “preoccupation with guns and the military and perseverates (speaks often) on this topic inappropriately,” that “he dreams of killing others and is covered in blood” and his mother feared he was armed with “a hatchet.” Dr. Negin said that he never received the letter and under cross-examination in 2022, said he was unaware that Cruz was already considering being a mass shooter, stating: “There is nothing in the record that would signify that whatsoever.”[27] Negin testified his next appointment with Cruz was three months after the letter on August 25^.[28] (It begs the question of how, even without the letter, he could have treated him for five years and missed the warning signs.)

January 2016: Henderson’s employees took part in the school district’s decision to mainstream Cruz from Cross Creek, a specialized school for children with severe emotional and behavioral problems, to Stoneman Douglas. He was heavily medicated at the time.[29]

2016: Cruz was in the Stoneman Douglas Army Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC).  He excelled at shooting, with other cadets calling him the “wolf.”[30] He was expelled in early 2017.  This is also of concern how he was able to be enrolled in a marksmanship course, being taught to use guns, when he had reportedly taken or was still taking “ADHD medication.” The marksmanship course is taught using air rifles.[31] Regardless, since 2014, the Department of Defense’s medical qualification standards regarding ADHD stimulants disqualifies applicants if they have been treated with ADD/ADHD drugs within the previous year and/or they displayed signs of ADD/ADHD. For applicants off medication for more than one year, and who do not demonstrate significant impulse activity or inattention, they may apply for a waiver. Waivers are only reviewed on a doctor-prescribed program for minor attention deficit issues. Any depression or other mental health problems associated with some ADD/ADHD label tips the scale into an area of medically disqualifying issues that are not waiverable.[32] A military lawyer advised that the regulations also apply to ROTC. (It is unknown what the Junior ROTC regulations are but, arguably, should follow the adult program in relation to stimulant or other psychotropic drugs.) ADHD stimulants such as Ritalin and Adderall are known to cause hallucinations, behavior changes, aggression, abnormal thoughts, sudden outbursts, thoughts of suicide and mood swings.[33]

2016: During treatment with Dr. Negin, Cruz was also a client of Henderson Behavioral Health.[34] A Florida Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) report indicated that was regularly taking “medication” for ADHD.[35] From the time Cruz was in middle school through late 2016, Broward County’s largest mental health services organization, Henderson Behavioral Health, dealt with him and he not only got counseling from them but staff there were deeply involved in major aspects of his life: providing input about his mother’s parenting skills, his medical care and his education. Over nine years, Cruz regularly received hundreds of hours of therapy sessions from Henderson.[36]

May 2. 2016:  A neighbor called police after seeing an alarming Instagram post that suggested Cruz might plan “to shoot up the school,” according to Sheriff office’s notes. A deputy responded to the house, found he had knives and BB gun, and then passed the information along to the school resource officer, Deputy Scot Peterson.[37]

2016-17 School-year: Cruz was suspended from school several times.[38]

September 28, 2016: A student reported that Cruz was depressed and cutting himself and had ingested gasoline in an attempt to kill himself. The student said Cruz wanted to buy a gun for hunting and had drawn a Swastika on his backpack next to the words, “I hate n—–s.” Counselors from Henderson advised police that Cruz “was not a risk to harm himself or anyone else” because he was on a treatment plan for ADHD, depression and autism. [39] An investigator’s report said that “[Cruz’s] clinician from Henderson mental health has stated that there are no issues with [Cruz’s] medication and he has been compliant with taking his medication and keeps all of his appointments.” A counselor at the school told the Florida Department of Children and Families investigators that a professional from the mental health facility had visited Cruz and “found him to be stable enough [to] not be hospitalized.”[40] He was assessed for the need of hospitalization in school and by the YES [Youth Emergency Service] team from Henderson Behavioral Health,” which could’ve led to hospitalization, either voluntarily or through the Baker Act.[41]

After Cruz’s evaluation, Henderson put him into a family intervention program with an unlicensed counselor, while he allegedly had an obsession with guns.[42]

September 2016: He was suspended for two days for fighting, only to return to be suspended again nine days after the fight, this time for hurling profane insults.[43]

A week after the suspension, the state received a report he was cutting his arms on Snapchat, a mobile application.[44] The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) investigated whether Cruz intended to harm himself, and had made alarming social media posts after an argument with his mother. Cruz was upset over a breakup with a girlfriend, his mother told investigators. According to a report by DCF, a mental health counselor from Henderson Behavioral Health, visited Cruz at home in the past and had him sign a “safety contract.”[45] Safety contracts are usually employed when someone is suicidal or self-harming.  There are studies to show that they are ineffective. (In a 2001 study, of people who attempted suicide in a psychiatric hospital, 65% had signed a safety contract.[46]) The Sun Sentinel reported that according to the 2016 state report, crisis workers from Henderson Behavioral Health, a major mental health center, were called to the high school and determined that Cruz was “not at risk to harm himself or others.”[47]

September 28, 2016: The Broward County Sheriff’s Office in Florida responded to a 911 call.  A police report noted Cruz had been harming himself and had talked about buying a gun. “He has been cutting his arms, his mother said, to get attention, as he learned it from an ex-girlfriend,” the report said. “He has mentioned in the past that he would like to purchase a firearm.”[48] Incident reports, as recent as September 2016, described Cruz as being “emotionally handicapped,” and being on “behavioral medication.”[49]

Jared Bienenfeld, a therapist with Henderson Behavioral Health “deemed Nikolas to be no threat to anyone or himself at this present time,” according to the police report.[50]

November 2016: The Florida DCF closed its investigation into Cruz’s worrisome behavior. A DCF report noted that a mental health center had been contacted in the past to detain Cruz under Florida’s Baker Act.  Henderson found him stable enough not to be hospitalized, the DCF investigator wrote.[51] (The Baker Act is notoriously abused and doesn’t guarantee better “care” for children and adolescents or the prevention of violent behavior, especially if the person is treated with and/or discharged on any psychotropic drug that has the potential to cause aggressive behavior or homicidal ideation.)

January 2017: Cruz assaulted someone and received a one-day internal suspension.[52] Broward County Public Schools disciplinary records obtained by The New York Times showed Cruz had a long history of fights with teachers. He was referred for a “threat assessment.” Cruz also worried officials at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High who, on at least one occasion, alerted a mobile crisis unit to get him emergency counseling, according to a state report.[53]

January 19, 2017:  An assistant principal suspended Cruz for “low assault.”[54]

February 2, 2017:  Cruz bought a gun—one of at least 10 guns he purchased after turning 18. He transferred out of the high school to Off Campus Learning Centers, an alternative program for students to make up credits.[55] He was expelled from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School over disciplinary issues.[56] He bounced between three alternative schools, most recently Rock Island OCLC in Oakland Park.[57]

Fall 2017: Cruz was reported to have attended Henderson Behavioral Health for about a year or more before he quit in the fall of 2017.[58]

September 24, 2017: Ten days after Cruz’s last visit with Dr. Negin, a Mississippi bail bondsman, Ben Bennight told the FBI that a commenter identifying himself as “Nikolas Cruz” had left a message on his YouTube channel that read, “I’m going to be a professional school shooter.”[59]

November 1, 2017: Lynda Cruz died at age 68.[60] With her death, Cruz lost one of the only people close to him, said friends and family. He was also reported to be “depressed.”[61] Cruz, then 18, and his brother moved to the care of a family friend, Rocxanne Deschamps. Within two weeks, police were called because of a reported fight; Deschamps told the police dispatcher that Cruz had “bought tons of ammo,” “has used a gun against people before” and “has put the gun to others heads in the past.”[62]

January 5, 2018: A woman close to Cruz’s family alerted the FBI she is concerned about Cruz owning guns, posting on Instagram that he wanted to kill people, and that he may go shoot up a school.[63]

In a video he produced before the shooting—and certainly an indication of the failure of his 16 years of treatment—Cruz said: “My life is nothing and meaningless. I live a lone life. I live in seclusion and solitude. I hate everyone and everything.”[64] Three days before the shooting, Cruz looked into his cellphone camera and declared, “Hello, my name is Nik. I’m going to be the next school shooter of 2018.” Prosecutor Michael Satz said Cruz was “cold, calculative, manipulative and deadly” in carrying out his attack.[65]

February 14, 2018: Cruz had never been arrested until this Valentine’s Day, when he went to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School and shot dead his former classmates and teachers.[66] While in custody, Cruz sat in a Broward Sheriff’s police interrogation room. He was not defiant. Instead, he cast himself as a pathetic failure beset by a “demon” in his head. When a detective left the room, Cruz muttered to himself: “Kill me. Just f***ing kill me” and “I want to die.”[67] The end result of 16 years of mental health “treatment!”

Following the shooting, he went to McDonalds and casually asked a fleeing student for a ride home.[68]

One expert testified in court in 2022 that Cruz may not have been taking his medication for five months leading up to the killings,[69] but that just worsens the long-term treatment of Cruz. The expert believed Cruz was last prescribed medication in 2017 and if he took the medication every day as prescribed, she said he would have been off the drug for around five months before the shooting.[70] However, that was not substantiated and researchers have found post-withdrawal symptoms from antidepressants, for example, “may last several months to years.” Reported symptoms included disturbed mood, emotional lability, irritability, and poor stress tolerance.[71]

Media reported, “While it is not clear how many medications Cruz was taking, the pharmaceutical drugs prescribed for depression and emotional issues are packed with a number of side effects that can lead to violent behavior.”[72]

July 2022: Attorneys for Cruz sought to persuade his jury to sentence him to life in prison without parole instead of death after he pleaded guilty.[73]  He had pleaded guilty in October 2021. State expert witness Dr. Michael Brannon, a psychologist, reviewed records of interviews with Cruz and claimed: “This is somebody who absolutely, 110%, has no capacity or understanding of how to deal with any negative affect, particularly anger.” Brannon said Cruz appears to have an anti-social personality disorder, attention deficit disorder, a learning disorder and borderline personality trait.[74]

ABOUT HENDERSON BEHAVIORAL HEALTH

Henderson Behavioral Health says it is one of the oldest, largest and most successful providers of behavioral healthcare in Florida.  Its director and Chief Executive Officer is Steven Ronik, a licensed clinical social worker.[75] Prior to his current role, Ronik held several leadership positions at the Zucker/Hillside Division of the LIJ/Northshore University Healthcare System in New York City. Zucker/Hillside is a National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) research center for schizophrenia and one of the nation’s leading research behavioral healthcare systems.[76]

• Through its participation in research, Henderson reports it is “able to incorporate cutting-edge knowledge of behavioral health disorders and enhanced service delivery to promote recovery and improve the lives of the people we serve.”[77] Its services includes medication management; psychotherapy, psychiatric evaluations, crisis counseling and intervention.[78] It was one of the centers that participated in the NIMH-funded project entitled, “Clinical Antipsychotic Trials of Intervention Effectiveness (CATIE) Study.” This was a 5 year nationwide clinical trial that compared newer antipsychotics with older ones to treat schizophrenia.[79]

• Henderson Behavioral Health is also a training facility and says it has trained 536 mental health providers in Domestic Violence, HIV/AIDS and Safety and Security.

• In October 2012, Henderson Behavioral Health was awarded a four-year, $1.6 million Primary Health/Behavioral Health Integration Grant from the Center for Mental Health Services of the Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

• In October 2011, Henderson Behavioral Health began participating in a three-year Computerized Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CCBT) study coordinated by the University of South Florida Rothman Center for Neuropsychiatry.

• In January 2010, Henderson Behavioral Health was selected as one of 30 leading behavioral healthcare organizations from across the United States to participate in an NIMH-funded research study. The study was designed to evaluate the benefits of a comprehensive pharmacological and psychosocial treatment package (the RAISE Enhanced Treatment Program).[80]

• In 2011, a mother filed a lawsuit against Henderson alleging that Mervin Span, a counselor at the facility had forced her to have sex multiple times with him by threatening to take her son away from her. The woman had received case management and counseling services. The lawsuit alleged Henderson “knew or should have known that Span was a sexual opportunist.” The woman sought damages in excess of $5 million.[81] The case settled in 2013.[82]

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Legislative hearings should be held to fully investigate the correlation between psychiatric treatment and violence and suicide.

1. Toxicology testing for psychiatric and even illicit drugs should be mandatory in cases where someone has committed a mass shooting or other serious violent crime, the information from which would become part of a national database that all branches and levels of law enforcement could access. For example, New York Senate Bill 7035 introduced in 2000, would have required police agencies to report to the Department of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS) on certain crimes and suicides committed by a person who was using psychotropic drugs. These crimes included assault, homicide, sex offenses, robbery offenses, firearms and other dangerous weapons offenses. 

1. Train law enforcement officers in the adverse effects of psychotropic drugs to be able to recognize that irrational, violent and suicidal behavior persons they may face could be influenced by psychiatric drugs.

Prepared by Citizens Commission on Human Rights International, a mental health watchdog group of nearly 50 years. CCHR has been investigating and collecting information on psychiatric drug links to school shooters and other acts of senseless violence since 1989 when Joseph Wesbecker shot dead eight people and injured 12 others at his workplace in Kentucky while taking Prozac. His medical records said the prescribing psychiatrist observed three days prior to the killing, an “increased level of agitation and anger.”[83] CCHR provided evidence to the Colorado State Board of Education and a State Hearing into psychotropic drugs and violence following the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. Ringleader, Eric Harris, was taking the antidepressant, Luvox. CCHR has been responsible for more than 180 laws worldwide that now protect the rights of patients and families in the mental health system.

REFERENCES:

[1] https://www.buzzfeed.com/briannasacks/authorities-were-called-to-alleged-florida-school-shooter?utm_term=.oa47mByJm#.psKga1rXa

[2] https://www.cchrint.org/school-shooters/

[3] https://www.cchrint.org/psychiatric-drugs/drug_warnings_on_violence/

[4] Joseph J. Cocozza and Henry J. Steadman, “The Failure of Psychiatric Predictions of Dangerousness: Clear and Convincing Evidence,” Rutgers Law Review, Vol. 29, No. 5, Late Summer 1976, pp. 1099-1100

[5] https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/predicting-violence-is-a-work-in-progress/2013/01/03/2e8955b8-5371-11e2-a613-ec8d394535c6_story.html?utm_term=.b09e546246de

[6] “Mass Murderers and Psychiatric Drugs,” Behaviorism and Mental Health, 22 Sept. 2014, http://behaviorismandmentalhealth.com/2014/09/22/mass-murderers-and-psychiatric-drugs/

[7] “Anatomy of an Epidemic: Psychiatric Drugs and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America,” Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, Vol. 7, No. I, Spring 2005, http://pt.cchr.org/sites/default/files/Anatomy_of_an_Epidemic_Psychiatric_Drugs_Rise_of_Mental_Illness.pdf

[8] “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times, 18 Feb. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/17/us/nikolas-cruz-florida-shooting.html; “Parkland school shooter’s defense calls witnesses who saw pregnant mother use alcohol, drugs,” Local 10 News, 23 Aug. 2022, https://www.local10.com/news/local/2022/08/22/opening-statements-begin-for-defense-in-parkland-school-shooters-penalty-phase-trial/; Hannah Phillips, “Nikolas Cruz sentencing trial live updates, Day 13: Gunman’s pre-school teacher recalls aggression,” The Palm Beach Post, 22 Aug. 2022, https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/courts/2022/08/22/parkland-shooting-nikolas-cruz-trial-defense-describes-cruzs-troubled-childhood/7863808001/

[9] “Parkland school shooter’s defense calls witnesses who saw pregnant mother use alcohol, drugs,” Local 10 News, 23 Aug. 2022, https://www.local10.com/news/local/2022/08/22/opening-statements-begin-for-defense-in-parkland-school-shooters-penalty-phase-trial/; Hannah Phillips, “Nikolas Cruz sentencing trial live updates, Day 13: Gunman’s pre-school teacher recalls aggression,” The Palm Beach Post, 22 Aug. 2022,https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/courts/2022/08/22/parkland-shooting-nikolas-cruz-trial-defense-describes-cruzs-troubled-childhood/7863808001/

[10] “Psychologist says Parkland school shooter was a child who ‘stuck out like a sore thumb,’” Local 10 news, 24 Aug. 2022, https://www.local10.com/news/local/2022/08/24/watch-live-parkland-school-shooters-defense-to-continue-calling-witnesses/

[11] “Psychologist: Parkland school shooter didn’t get consistent treatment,” CBS News, Miami, 24 Aug. 2022, https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/psychologist-parkland-school-shooter-didnt-get-consistent-treatment/

[12] “Defense shows report of Parkland school shooter’s threat to stab teacher, letter on ‘dreams of killing others,’” Local 10 News, 26 Aug. 2022,https://www.local10.com/news/local/2022/08/25/watch-live-parkland-school-shooters-defense-team-to-continue-to-call-witnesses/

[13] “Nikolas Cruz, Florida Shooting Suspect, Showed ‘Every Red Flag’” The New York Times, 15 Feb. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/15/us/nikolas-cruz-florida-shooting.html

[14] https://www.buzzfeed.com/briannasacks/authorities-were-called-to-alleged-florida-school-shooter?utm_term=.oa47mByJm#.psKga1rXa

[15] “Nikolas Cruz sentencing – latest: Parkland shooter asked if people ‘ate’ corpses and told class ‘I like guns,’” Inside Headline, 1 Sept. 2022, https://insideheadline.com/nikolas-cruz-sentencing-latest-parkland-shooter-asked-if-people-ate-corpses-and-told-class-i-like-guns/

[16] Jose Pagliery and Curt Devine, “School shooter showed violence and mental instability at home, police reports reveal,” CNN, 17 Feb. 2017, https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/16/us/florida-shooter-cruz-records-police-calls-to-home-invs/index.html; “Nikolas Cruz sentencing trial: Outbursts, then apologies, marked Parkland gunman’s behavior,” The Palm Beach Post, 31 Aug 2022, https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/courts/2022/08/31/nikolas-cruz-sentencing-trial-parkland-gunmans-mom-feared-him-neighbor-says/7951345001/

[17] “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times, 18 Feb. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/17/us/nikolas-cruz-florida-shooting.html

[18] https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/risperidone-oral-route/side-effects/drg-20067189?p=1

[19] “Psychiatrist who treated Cruz says he never received school’s warning letter,” Local 10 News, 26 Aug. 2022, https://www.local10.com/news/local/2022/08/26/psychiatrist-who-treated-cruz-says-he-never-received-schools-letter-warning-of-obsession-with-guns-killing/

[20] “Psychiatrist who treated Cruz says he never received school’s warning letter,” Local 10 News, 26 Aug. 2022, https://www.local10.com/news/local/2022/08/26/psychiatrist-who-treated-cruz-says-he-never-received-schools-letter-warning-of-obsession-with-guns-killing/

[21] https://www.drugs.com/sfx/clonidine-side-effects.html

[22] https://www.rxlist.com/focalin-xr-side-effects-drug-center.htm

[23] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[24] Op. cit. “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times

[25] https://www.cbsnews.com/news/florida-shooting-suspect-nikolas-cruz-school-records/; http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/parkland/florida-school-shooting/fl-florida-school-shooting-nikolas-cruz-warning-signs-20180216-story.html

[26] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[27] “Psychiatrist who treated Cruz says he never received school’s warning letter,” Local 10 News, 26 Aug. 2022,

https://www.local10.com/news/local/2022/08/26/psychiatrist-who-treated-cruz-says-he-never-received-schools-letter-warning-of-obsession-with-guns-killing/

[28] Lenny Cohen, “Cruz ‘dreams of killing others’ is ‘not something you wait 3 months for,’ doc testifies,” TND, 25 Aug. 2022, https://thenationaldesk.com/news/americas-news-now/nikolas-cruz-parkland-shooter-defense-sentencing-trial-marjory-stoneman-douglas-high-school-shooting-guns-mental-health-psychiatrist

[29] Megan O’Matz, Mental health provider had long history with Parkland shooter. Was agency negligent?” 16 Jan. 2019, https://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/parkland/florida-school-shooting/fl-ne-henderson-cruz-civil-suit-20190116-story.html

[30] https://www.inquisitr.com/4790263/nra-helped-nikolas-cruz-train-to-use-rifles-by-donating-10000-to-his-school-team/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+google%2FyDYq+%28The+Inquisitr+-+News%29&utm_content=Yahoo+Search+Results

[31] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5397023/Nikolas-Cruz-trained-taking-JROTC-marksmanship-course.html#ixzz57iNlnxBl

[32] https://www.thebalance.com/new-asthma-and-add-adhd-policy-3353970

[33] Ritalin, Side Effects Center, http://www.rxlist.com/ritalin-side-effects-drug-center.htm; Adderall, Side Effects Center, http://www.rxlist.com/adderall-side-effects-drug-center.htm.; https://www.cchrint.org/2017/04/05/study-shows-long-term-use-of-adhd-drugs-ineffective-as-treatment-but-do-cause-growth-suppression/

[34] “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times, 18 Feb. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/17/us/nikolas-cruz-florida-shooting.html; https://www.buzzfeed.com/briannasacks/authorities-were-called-to-alleged-florida-school-shooter?utm_term=.oa47mByJm#.psKga1rXa

[35] “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times, 18 Feb. 2018, https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/17/us/nikolas-cruz-florida-shooting.html; https://www.buzzfeed.com/briannasacks/authorities-were-called-to-alleged-florida-school-shooter?utm_term=.oa47mByJm#.psKga1rXa

[36] Megan O’Matz, Mental health provider had long history with Parkland shooter. Was agency negligent?” 16 Jan. 2019, https://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/parkland/florida-school-shooting/fl-ne-henderson-cruz-civil-suit-20190116-story.html

[37] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[38] Op. cit. “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times

[39] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[40] Phil McCausland, “Florida mental health agency examined Cruz in 2016, didn’t hospitalize him,” NBC News, 18 Feb. 2018, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/social-media-post-led-florida-agency-investigate-nikolas-cruz-2016-n849221

[41] “Cruz ‘dreams of killing others’ is ‘not something you wait 3 months for,’ doc testifies,” ABC 15 News, 25 Aug. 2022, https://wpde.com/news/nation-world/nikolas-cruz-parkland-shooter-defense-sentencing-trial-marjory-stoneman-douglas-high-school-shooting-guns-mental-health-psychiatrist

[42] Megan O’Matz, Mental health provider had long history with Parkland shooter. Was agency negligent?” 16 Jan. 2019, https://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/parkland/florida-school-shooting/fl-ne-henderson-cruz-civil-suit-20190116-story.html

[43] Op. cit. “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times

[44] http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-school-shooting-nikolas-cruz-discipline-file-20180217-story.html

[45] Op. cit. “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times

[46] https://pro.psychcentral.com/the-suicidal-client-contracting-for-safety/

[47] “Nikolas Cruz was regularly in trouble at school for years, disciplinary records show,” The Sun Sentinel, 17 Feb. 2018. http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-school-shooting-nikolas-cruz-discipline-file-20180217-story.html

[48] https://www.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeednews/florida-school-shooting?utm_term=.wto6Lro7L#.fhG2bnqKb

[49] https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/16/us/florida-shooter-cruz-records-police-calls-to-home-invs/index.html

[50] http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5404639/Florida-school-shooter-violent-against-mom-legally-got-gun.html

[51] Op. cit. “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times

[52] “Nikolas Cruz was regularly in trouble at school for years, disciplinary records show,” The Sun Sentinel, 17 Feb. 2018, http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-school-shooting-nikolas-cruz-discipline-file-20180217-story.html

[53] Op. cit. “Florida Agency Investigated Nikolas Cruz After Violent Social Media Posts,” The New York Times

[54] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[55] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[56] https://www.yahoo.com/news/suspect-nra-supported-target-rifle-team-191655883–politics.html/

[57] Op. cit. “Nikolas Cruz was regularly in trouble at school for years, disciplinary records show,” The Sun Sentinel

[58] http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/broward/article200223414.html; https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/16/us/florida-shooter-cruz-records-police-calls-to-home-invs/index.html

[59] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[60] https://www.buzzfeed.com/briannasacks/authorities-were-called-to-alleged-florida-school-shooter?utm_term=.oa47mByJm#.psKga1rXa

[61] https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/fla-shooting-suspect-had-a-history-of-explosive-anger-depression-killing-animals/2018/02/15/06f05710-1291-11e8-9570-29c9830535e5_story.html?utm_term=.20465dbec9e3

[62] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[63] Maria Perez and Brett Murphy, “A timeline of Nikolas Cruz’s activities leading up to the mass school shooting in Parkland, Florida,” Naples Daily News, 27 Feb. 2018, https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/crime/2018/02/27/timeline-nikolas-cruzs-activities-leading-up-mass-school-shooting-broward-county/377021002/

[64] “Nikolas Cruz pleads guilty to the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School,” NPR, 20 Oct. 2021, https://www.npr.org/2021/10/20/1047574452/parkland-nikolas-cruz-pleads-guilty-high-school

[65] “Parkland school shooter was ‘cold, calculative, manipulative and deadly,’ prosecutors say in death penalty trial,” CNN, 19 July 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/18/us/nikolas-cruz-parkland-shooter-penalty-phase/index.html

[66] https://www.buzzfeed.com/briannasacks/authorities-were-called-to-alleged-florida-school-shooter?utm_term=.oa47mByJm#.psKga1rXa

[67] https://www.flmhlaw.com/burn-kill-destroy-parkland-mass-shooter-claimed-demons-drove-violence-miami-herald/

[68] https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2022/07/22/parkland-shooter-ordered-slushy-and-asked-student-whose-sister-had-been-shot–for-a-ride-home-after-killing-17/?sh=1d7f0009298f

[69] https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/news/courts/2022/08/30/nikolas-cruz-sentencing-trial-defense-week-two/7937396001/

[70] https://insideheadline.com/nikolas-cruz-sentencing-latest-parkland-shooter-asked-if-people-ate-corpses-and-told-class-i-like-guns/

[71] https://www.cchrint.org/psychiatric-drugs/side-effects-can-persist/

[72] “Family Say Florida School Shooter Was On Big Pharma Antidepressants,” News Punch, 17 Feb. 2018, https://newspunch.com/florida-school-shooter-antidepressants/

[73] “Psychologist: Parkland school shooter didn’t get consistent treatment,” CBS News, Miami, 24 Aug. 2022, https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/psychologist-parkland-school-shooter-didnt-get-consistent-treatment/

[74] “Expert Witness Quizzed, Evidence Challenged in Parkland School Shooter Hearing,” NBC News South Florida, 6 Jul. 2022, https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/parkland-school-tragedy/expert-witness-quizzed-evidence-challenged-in-parkland-school-shooter-hearing/2799601/

[75] https://appsmqa.doh.state.fl.us/MQASearchServices/HealthcareProviders/LicenseVerification?LicInd=3056&Procde=5201&org=

[76] http://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/south-florida-100/sfl-about-steven-ronik-sf-100-story.html

[77] http://www.hendersonbh.org/who-we-are.php

[78] http://www.hendersonbh.org/crisis.php

[79] http://www.hendersonbh.org/research-projects.php

[80] http://www.hendersonbh.org/outcome.php

[81] https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Lawsuit-Mom-Forced-to-Have-Sex-to-Keep-Son-118510239.html; http://www.psychsearch.net/pdf/11009322.pdf

[82] Jane Doe No 1 vs Henderson Mental Health Center LLC, et al., Broward County Case Number:  CACE11006756, Filed 23 Mar. 2011, https://www.browardclerk.org/Web2/CaseSearch/Details/?caseid=MzQwNjM0Mw%3d%3d-lDSmWpbrMHs%3d&caseNum=CACE11006756&category=CV

[83] Transcript of the proceedings of the coroner’s inquest into the Wesbecker murders, Jefferson County, 22 Nov. 1989, pp. I and 71-76