A Florida judge tentatively agreed Thursday that live ammunition could be used in a reenactment of 2018's mass shooting inside Florida's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School as part of a civil lawsuit.
The judge also agreed the reenactment -- part of a civil lawsuit against Scot Peterson, the then-school resource officer who remained outside as a shooter killed 17 people and injured 17 others on Valentine's Day 2018 -- could take place August 4, she said in a hearing.
Broward County Judge Carol-Lisa Phillips had earlier this month ruled that each side could conduct reenactments in the school's three-story 1200 building, where the shooting took place. But on Thursday attorneys for the plaintiffs and the defendant told Phillips they'd agreed on conducting only one, and Phillips OK'd the plan.
"We did not see the need to put the community through that twice, and I think that the agreement that we have reached serves everyone's purpose," Michael Piper, Peterson's attorney, said during Thursday's hearing.
The plaintiffs -- several of the victims' families and a survivor -- want to record a reenactment of the shooting to show the former Broward Sheriff's Office deputy would have heard the shots and known where they were coming from, their attorney has said previously.
The defense team for Peterson, who has argued he didn't enter the building because he couldn't tell where the gunshots were coming from due to echoes on the campus, also has said it was interested in a reenactment.
As for the ammunition: The plaintiffs' attorneys had previously said they intended to use blanks in the reenactment.
But on Thursday, plaintiffs' attorney David Brill asked the judge's permission to use live rounds fired into a ballistic bullet trap, saying experts his team consulted noted a difference in the sound of blanks from the live rounds.
The defense also would prefer live rounds be used in the reenactment, Piper, Peterson's attorney, said.
Attorneys for both the city of Parkland and Broward County schools said they didn't object to the use of live rounds, but said this was their first time hearing about the proposal and would like to confer with their clients.
Phillips told the attorneys she wouldn't have an issue with the use of live rounds, but wanted to allow attorneys for both the city and school board the opportunity to speak with their clients in case they wanted to raise further objection.
"Given the testimony we've heard here ... I really don't think that should be an issue. However, if it is, I'll certainly take that up in the future," Phillips said.
The ballistic trap would be the type widely used by law enforcement to capture live rounds "in a completely safe manner and in a controlled environment," Brill said.
Former FBI special agent Bruce E. Koenig, an expert for the plaintiffs, testified that while blanks are as loud as live rounds, there is a difference in the quality of the sound.
"There is no advantage there going with blanks ... but as a forensic scientist, I'm concerned about giving the court and all the parties involved the most accurate assessment of the scene," Koenig said.
The civil suit comes after Peterson was found not guilty late last month of criminal charges. Prosecutors had accused him of ignoring his training and failing to confront the shooter, instead taking cover outside the building. The building was preserved pending Peterson's trial and that of the shooter, who was sentenced to life in prison without parole last year.
The school system has indicated that the 1200 building would be demolished sometime after the reenactment.
