For more than six years, Building 1200 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, has served as a reminder of one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history.
The building has been abandoned since a gunman killed 14 students and three staff members on Valentine’s Day 2018. But workers are scheduled to begin demolishing the three-storey structure on Friday after it was preserved as evidence in the gunman’s trial.
Demolition work was scheduled to begin Thursday morning but was postponed due to heavy rain and flooding. The building, which still bears bullet holes and blood stains and has been described as a time capsule by those who have toured it, was sealed off after the shooting and fenced off as evidence of the crime scene.
Officials said they expect the demolition to take several weeks. School officials have not yet announced what will replace the building, but students, teachers and families have suggested installing a permanent memorial.
Officials said family members of the victims were invited to watch the demolition and were given designated viewing areas on the school grounds.
“Demolishing the building where my daughter Gina and so many others lost their lives is an essential part of moving forward,” Tony Montalto, executive director of Stand with Parkland, said in a statement to USA Today. “Demolishing Building 1200 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School does not erase the fact that it was here that the deadliest high school shooting in American history took place. 17 amazing lives were tragically taken because so many simple school safety steps were not prioritized.”
Other schools have been closed and demolished after mass shootings. The old Sandy Hook Elementary School was demolished after a mass shooting in 2012 and reopened in 2016. Officials have announced plans to demolish Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in 2022.
Six years after the Parkland shooting:School librarians work hard to make their spaces the safest they can be.
Aftermath of the Parkland High School Shooting
After the shooting, there were calls to demolish the old freshman building, but authorities ordered it remain standing until the shooter’s trial is over in 2022.
Prosecutors gave jurors a rare tour of the crime scene, where they saw blood on the floor, bullet holes in the walls, shards of glass from broken windows and students’ homework and Valentine’s Day gifts left in the mess.
The shooter, Nikolas Cruz, was sentenced to life in prison without parole in November 2022. He had been charged with 17 counts of murder.
The victim’s family expressed anger and disgust at the jury’s decision. Prosecutors had sought the death penalty, but Florida law requires a unanimous vote on at least one count to sentence someone to death, The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network, reported at the time.
The building was also used to re-enact the shooting that happened last August as part of a civil lawsuit against former Broward County schools security officer Scott Peterson, who is accused of failing to protect students. Ballistics experts used the same AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle used by Cruz.
The lawsuit filed by the victims’ families alleges that Peterson was negligent in not entering the building and engaging the shooter, saying he remained outside because he didn’t know where the gunfire was coming from.
In a separate criminal case in June 2023, Peterson was acquitted of 11 counts of child abuse, negligence and perjury.
“Creating a space that honors their heritage.”
The Parkland shooting sparked a widespread movement calling for gun control laws and public safety reform, and the tragedy led to the founding of the student-led organization March for Our Lives.
March for Our Lives was founded by teenage shooting survivors, and since then, hundreds of demonstrations linked to the organization have been held across the country. In 2018, more than one million people rallied in Washington, D.C. Thousands of people have rallied in 2022 to call for stricter gun control following other mass shootings.
Parkland families also launched an advocacy group called Stand with Parkland in 2018. The national organization said it is committed to advocating for “practical public safety reforms focused on student and staff safety in schools, improved mental health supports, and responsible firearms ownership.”
The group works with state and local officials to raise awareness of school safety and has contributed to many bipartisan efforts.
“While we can’t erase the pain or the memories, we can create space to celebrate their accomplishments and foster hope for a safer future,” Montalto said. “That’s why we fight every day to pass meaningful legislation that will keep our families safe in our schools.”
By Hannah Phillips, Palm Beach Post
