美国国家公共电台 NPR--Families of Parkland school shooting victims are lashing out after jury's decision

Families of Parkland school shooting victims are lashing¹ out after jury's decision

Transcript²

Families of the 17 people killed in the 2018 attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., are angry about the jury's decision to spare the life of shooter Nikolas Cruz.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Families of those killed in the 2018 attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School are angry about a Florida jury's decision to spare the life of Nikolas Cruz, the shooter. The former student pleaded guilty to killing³ 17 students and staff members at the Parkland school and wounding 17 others. After a three-month trial, the jury recommended Cruz get a life sentence in prison without the possibility of parole, rather than the death penalty. NPR's Greg Allen reports from Fort Lauderdale.

GREG ALLEN, BYLINE⁴: There was stunned⁵ silence in the courtroom in Fort Lauderdale as Judge Elizabeth Scherer read the sentencing verdict for each of the 17 victims. For each one, the jury's sentence was life in prison. Many of the families wanted the death penalty. Tony Montalto, whose 14-year-old daughter Gina was one of those killed, called it a gut⁶ punch.

TONY MONTALTO: Seventeen beautiful lives were cut short by murder - heinous⁷, preplanned, torturous⁸ murder. And the monster that killed them gets to live another day.

ALLEN: In opting⁹ for life in prison, jurors indicated they were swayed by arguments made by Cruz's lawyers, that he's, quote, "a brain-damaged, broken, mentally ill person through no fault of his own." Defense¹⁰ attorneys made the case that Cruz's problems began before he was born, when his mother abused drugs and alcohol. They presented expert testimony¹¹ that he suffers from fetal alcohol spectrum¹² disorder¹³ and that everyone from his adoptive mother to school counselors¹⁴ failed to get him the treatment he needed. On the verdict forms, jurors indicated those concerns outweighed¹⁵ aggravating¹⁶ factors that Cruz premeditated and planned the murders and that he carried them out in a heinous, atrocious and cruel manner. Ilan Alhadeff, whose daughter Alyssa died that day, said the sentence left him disgusted with the system.

ILAN ALHADEFF: So that means that everyone that has a mental illness should go on a killing spree? That's what we're telling this society, that we're saying that's OK because you have a mental illness?

ALLEN: The families had nothing but praise for the prosecution¹⁷ team, who they say made a strong case for the death penalty. Many of the families focused their anger and criticism on jurors, who they felt may have not been honest in the jury selection process. Every juror assured the court they could vote for the death penalty if it was appropriate. Alyssa Alhadeff's mother, Lori.

LORI ALHADEFF: What is the death penalty for if not for the murder and killing of 17 people?

ALLEN: Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter Jaime was one of those killed by Cruz, worries this verdict sends the wrong message on school safety.

FRED GUTTENBERG: I think anyone planning a shooting right now sees that there's a path to avoid the death penalty, where it does exist. And the death penalty does exist, by the way.

ALLEN: As the families expressed their anger, Broward County's public defender¹⁸, whose office represented Cruz, asked the community to respect the verdict. Amid the backlash, jury foreman Benjamin Thomas told Miami CBS 4 one juror was a holdout for a life sentence.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BENJAMIN THOMAS: It really came down to a specific jury (ph) that, you know, he was mentally ill, and she didn't believe, because he was mentally ill, he should get the death penalty.

ALLEN: Following the verdict, one of the jurors delivered a letter to the judge denying rumors¹⁹ that she'd made up her mind to vote for life before the trial started. The deliberations were very tense, she wrote, and some jurors became extremely unhappy once I mentioned I would vote for life. Jury foreman Thomas said, eventually, two other jurors joined her in rejecting the death penalty. Judge Scherer said next month, she'll formally sentence Cruz to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Greg Allen, NPR News, Fort Lauderdale.

1 lashing   

n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• The speaker was lashing the crowd. 演讲人正在煽动人群。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The rain was lashing the windows. 雨急打着窗子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

6 gut   

n.[pl.]胆量；内脏；adj.本能的；vt.取出内脏

参考例句：

• It is not always necessary to gut the fish prior to freezing.冷冻鱼之前并不总是需要先把内脏掏空。
• My immediate gut feeling was to refuse.我本能的直接反应是拒绝。

7 heinous   

adj.可憎的，十恶不赦的

参考例句：

• They admitted to the most heinous crimes.他们承认了极其恶劣的罪行。
• I do not want to meet that heinous person.我不想见那个十恶不赦的人。

8 torturous   

adj. 痛苦的

参考例句：

• His breathing was torturous.他的呼吸充满痛苦。
• This is a torturous agonizing way to kill someone.这是一种让人受尽折磨、痛苦难忍的杀人方法。

9 opting   

v.选择，挑选( opt的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• What courses are most students opting for? 多数学生选什么课程？ 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Wells doesn't rule out opting out and then re-signing with Houston. 威尔斯没有排除跳出合同再与火箭重签的可能。 来自互联网

10 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

11 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

12 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

13 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

14 counselors   

n.顾问( counselor的名词复数 )；律师；（使馆等的）参赞；（协助学生解决问题的）指导老师

参考例句：

• Counselors began an inquiry into industrial needs. 顾问们开始调查工业方面的需要。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• We have experienced counselors available day and night. ) 这里有经验的法律顾问全天候值班。） 来自超越目标英语 第4册

15 outweighed   

v.在重量上超过( outweigh的过去式和过去分词 )；在重要性或价值方面超过

参考例句：

• This boxer outweighed by his opponent 20 pounds. 这个拳击选手体重比他的对手重20磅。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She outweighed me by ten pounds, and sometimes she knocked me down. 她的体重超过我十磅，有时竟把我撞倒。 来自百科语句

16 aggravating   

adj.恼人的，讨厌的

参考例句：

• How aggravating to be interrupted! 被打扰，多令人生气呀！
• Diesel exhaust is particularly aggravating to many susceptible individuals. 许多体质敏感的人尤其反感柴油废气。

17 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

18 defender   

n.保卫者，拥护者，辩护人

参考例句：

• He shouldered off a defender and shot at goal.他用肩膀挡开防守队员，然后射门。
• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。

19 rumors   

n.传闻( rumor的名词复数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷v.传闻( rumor的第三人称单数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷

参考例句：

• Rumors have it that the school was burned down. 有谣言说学校给烧掉了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Rumors of a revolt were afloat. 叛变的谣言四起。 来自《简明英汉词典》