Families settle legal battle over who owns the name and likeness of the Parkland killer

Terry Spencer
| Associated Press

Fort Lauderdale, Florida. — A nasty legal rift between the most seriously injured survivor of the 2018 Parkland High School massacre and the families of some of the 17 slain victims was resolved Monday, with all parties now owning an equal share of the killer’s publicity rights and the annuity he may receive. .

Under the agreement signed by District Judge Carol-Lisa Phillips, survivor Anthony Borges, the families of slain students Meadow Pollack, Luke Hoyer and Alaina Petty, and surviving fellow student Maddie Wilford now control any attempts by shooter Nikolas Cruz to profit from his name or likeness. or give interviews. Each of the five parties has the right of veto.

They would also split the $400,000 annuity left to him by Cruz’s late mother, if he ever received it. The victims’ families and Wilford said they would donate their share to charity. Borges’ lawyer, Alex Arreaza, said his client needs money for future medical expenses.

The settlement was reached a day before the parties were scheduled to argue with Phillips about whether to rescind the June agreement that Borges, 21, and his parents reached with Cruz. This would give Borges ownership of Cruz’s name and image, approval of any interviews he might give, and an annuity. Cruz shot the once-promising football star five times in the torso and legs, nearly causing him to bleed to death. He underwent many operations.

Lawyers for Wilford, who was shot four times, and the families of Pollack, Hoyer and Petty quickly responded by paying Cruz a $190 million settlement they admit they will never receive.

They said they were stunned by Borges’ agreement, saying there was a verbal agreement to work together in their lawsuit against Cruz. Other victims’ families and survivors have not chosen to participate in the lawsuit.

“The purpose of the (Borges) settlement was to prevent Cruz from testifying. Now it is shared with other parents. This has never been an issue,” Arreaza said in a statement.

David Brill, the lead attorney for the families and Wilford, said Arreaza and the Borges family had “capitulated.” He stressed that all five victims and families in the settlement now have a say in whether Cruz ever speaks publicly, not just Borges.

“This agreed order fully vindicates the position we have taken and for which we have been shamelessly criticized by the Borgeses and their lawyer Alex Arreaza,” Brill said in a statement.

The fight became public at a September court hearing as each side accused the other of lying. An irritated Phillips at one point compared their dispute to a contested divorce that she granted. She called on the parties to agree on a settlement.

The animosity began during negotiations over how to split a $25 million settlement reached in 2021 with Broward County Schools. The families of the 17 killed insisted that Borges receive $1 less than they would have, in recognition that they suffered more damage.

Arreaza believed Borges deserved $5 million from the pot because he would have to pay for medical expenses for the rest of his life. As a result, his client was kicked out of the group, although he did not budge. The fight continued during negotiations over a $127 million settlement that victims’ families and survivors reached with the FBI over its failure to investigate a report that Cruz was planning a mass shooting. Eventually the Borgeses reached their settlements.

The families of all the victims, survivors and others who suffered mental health issues from the shooting are still awaiting a lawsuit against fired Broward County Sheriff’s Deputy Scott Peterson, who was assigned to the school. They say he failed to pursue Cruz during his six-minute rampage. Peterson was acquitted of criminal charges last year. The sheriff’s office and two former school security guards are also facing lawsuits.

A hearing date for this lawsuit has not been set.

Cruz, 26, pleaded guilty to the shooting in 2021. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole in 2022 after a jury spared him the death penalty.