Nikolas Cruz, the shooter responsible for killing 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, was investigated by police in a separate incident long before the devastating attack occurred.
Cruz was investigated by Florida’s child welfare agency back in 2016 after he posted a video on Snapchat cutting his arms, according to The Miami Herald, which obtained records from Florida’s Department of Children and Families (DCF).
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The agency was called to investigate the video. Cruz was 18 at the time and listed ash an “alleged victim” of medical neglect and inadequate supervision at the hands of his now-deceased adoptive mother, Lynda Cruz, the “alleged perpetrator.”
“Mr. Cruz was on Snapchat cutting both of his arms,” the abuse hotline was told in August 2016. “Mr. Cruz as fresh cuts on both his arms. Mr. Cruz stated he plans to go out and buy a gun.”
The investigation was completed by Nov. 12, 2016, after the agency decided that Cruz hadn’t been mistreated by his mother and was receiving sufficient care from a mental health counselor, in addition to attending school.
“Henderson came out and assessed the (victim and) found him to be stable enough not to be hospitalized,” the report read.
Cruz had been diagnosed with autism, a neurological disorder, as well as ADHD, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder.
The reports provide more evidence that Cruz had a troubled past before he was charged with 17 counts of murder in the shooting attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida.
One clinical professor of psychology at University of Miami says it’s important to note that an autism diagnosis should not be viewed as as one of the causes of the devastating event.
“It is a terrible, terrible tragedy,” Michael Alessandri said. “I can assure you that autism is not what pulled the trigger for this young man…This is unquestionably an issue of mental illness. Ausim is not that. It is a social communication disorder, not a violent disorder.”
