Joe Raedle/Getty Images(PARKLAND, Fla.) — Former Broward County sheriff’s Deputy Scot Peterson — whom President Donald Trump called a “coward” for not engaging the gunman at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School — has hired a lawyer to respond to “unfounded criticism of his actions” during the mass shooting.
Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel announced Thursday that the decision was made to suspend Peterson after reviewing video from the shooting and taking statements from witnesses and Peterson himself, Israel said.
“He should have went in, addressed the killer, killed the killer,” Israel said Thursday.
Peterson was armed and on campus during the shooting, Israel said. Since he met the requirements for retirement, Peterson opted to resign after he was told he was being suspended, Israel said.
Seventeen people were killed in the Valentine’s Day massacre at the Parkland, Florida, high school.
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