In a unique civil settlement, Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz has agreed to donate his brain to science. This agreement was reached with one of his victims, according to court papers and experts.
Cruz infamously used an AR-15 assault rifle to kill 17 students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland on February 14, 2018. This massacre remains one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history.
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Anthony Borges, 21, who was shot five times during the attack, proposed this unusual stipulation through his attorney, Alex Arreaza. “I figured if scientists studied his brain, they might figure out what created this monster,” Arreaza told Fox News Digital. “Maybe there was some kind of imbalance that we can prevent in the future.”
Attorney Scott Herndon, who has represented other victims of mass shootings, called the settlement novel. “I’ve never heard of anything like this before. It’s pretty unique,” he said. “It underscores the feeling of those left behind that whatever can be done to avoid these massacres in the future should be done.”
The agreement also grants Borges the rights to Cruz’s name for use in movies, books, and other media. Cruz, now 25 and serving a life sentence, can’t profit from his crime and must get permission from Borges before giving any interviews.
“We didn’t want him to continue torturing the families,” Arreaza said, comparing it to O.J. Simpson’s book “If I Did It.”
The agreement was finalized in a Zoom meeting between Rory Borges, Anthony’s father, Cruz, and Arreaza. Anthony Borges, suffering from PTSD, did not participate in the discussions. “You could see what a psychopath he is,” Arreaza noted. “He looked at Rory when we were done and asked if he could apologize. It was cold and weird.”
Anthony Borges was 15 when he was shot. He blocked a door with his body to keep Cruz from entering the classroom where he and other students hid. The attack left him with severe wounds to his legs and torso, requiring more than a dozen surgeries.
The settlement also includes $430,000 from a relative’s life insurance policy expected to go to Borges. Previously, the Broward County Public School District paid $26 million to the victims, with $1.25 million going to Borges. An undisclosed settlement from the FBI also went to Borges due to their failure to prevent Cruz’s rampage.
Borges and other victims have pending lawsuits against School Resource Officer Scot Peterson and the Broward County Sheriff’s Office. The young man, still haunted by the shooting, is glad the site of the massacre is being demolished. “Every time he drove by there, it brought back memories,” Arreaza said.
