Scot Peterson was the armed school resource officer on duty at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida when a student opened fire inside the building more than a year ago. Instead of challenging the shooter and saving lives, he stayed outside the building, listening to the sound of gunfire and screams while 17 students and teachers died.
Now Peterson has been arrested for his cowardly neglect. According to WDAE . . .
Following an investigation by FDLE, former Broward Sheriff’s Deputy Scot Peterson, 56, was arrested in Broward County today on seven counts of neglect of a child and three counts of culpable negligence and one count of perjury. The arrest comes after a 15-month investigation into the actions of law enforcement following the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting.
“The FDLE investigation shows former Deputy Peterson did absolutely nothing to mitigate the MSD shooting that killed 17 children, teachers and staff and injured 17 others,” said FDLE Commissioner Rick Swearingen. “There can be no excuse for his complete inaction and no question that his inaction cost lives.”
“I was pleased the Florida Department of Law Enforcement in conjunction with the State Attorney’s Office conducted a thorough investigation that yielded the arrest of Scot Peterson. All the facts related to Mr. Peterson’s failure to act during the MSD massacre clearly warranted both termination of employment and criminal charges. It’s never too late for accountability and justice,” Sheriff Gregory Tony said.
Peterson is also being sued by a group of Parkland survivors and parents for his failure to act, though similar suits have been dismissed.
Peterson was just one of a number of ill-trained, incompetent officers under the command of former Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel. Israel was removed from his position for cause when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis took office.