8/20/2023 0 Comments Santa cruz sentinel obituaries![]() Wednesday at Mehl”s Colonial Chapel, 222 E. Gospodnetich is survived by his son, Gary Gospodnetich of Palm Desert daughters Barbra Rudisill of Freedom and Susan Keller of Hollister sister Tomi Antunovich of Watsonville six grandchildren one great-grandchild and numerous nieces and nephews. He loved family gatherings, shopping and visiting with people at the stores. He was a member of the Elks Club of Watsonville, SIRS and the 65 Club. After retirement, he worked at Royal Supply and Driscoll Strawberries. He owned Bill”s Carpet Service for more than 25 years. He served in the Army during World War II. Gospodnetich was born and raised in Watsonville. The 24-year-old former Stoneman Douglas student was sentenced instead to life in prison.Mr. Inside, Cruz climbed to the building’s upper floors, firing approximately 75 more shots over nearly four minutes.Ĭruz pleaded guilty to the murders in 2021, but the jury in his penalty trial could not unanimously agree that he deserved a death sentence. He said he heard “two, three” shots, though security guards told investigators they heard many more, clearly coming from inside the building. I thought it was probably outside,” Peterson told investigators two days after the shooting. Instead, he took cover outside next to a neighboring building. Peterson, his handgun drawn, didn’t open the door. Peterson got out of the cart near the classroom building’s eastern first-floor doorway to the first-floor hallway while the gunman was at the opposite end, firing numerous shots. ![]() They arrived at the crime scene a minute later. Security videos show that 36 seconds after the attack began, Peterson left his office about 100 yards (92 meters) from the building and jumped into a cart with two unarmed civilian security guards, according to a state report. ![]() To gain a conviction, prosecutors must convince jurors that Peterson knew the gunman was firing inside the building and that his actions and inaction exposed more victims to harm. It is likely, however, that the jury will be be taken to the school to see the outside area where Peterson stood during most of the attack. Fein said he would issue his ruling later. But Fein seemed to agree with Eiglarsh, who says there is sufficient video and photo evidence to demonstrate the distances and that having jurors tour the building would only inflame their emotions. Prosecutor Steven Klinger told the judge that the jurors need to see the distances inside the building. The building has been maintained and sealed since days after the shooting and is expected to be torn down after Peterson’s trial. The judge also expressed skepticism of the prosecution’s request to have jurors tour the classroom building’s blood-stained halls, something Cruz’s jury did during his penalty trial last year. Fein said if the witnesses are subpoenaed, they have no choice. The attorney said some of his witnesses have vacations and other conflicts and say they won’t appear. The trial could last until August.ĭuring Monday’s hearing, Circuit Judge Martin Fein rejected Eiglarsh’s request to delay the trial until August. Jury selection is scheduled to start May 31 with opening statements in early June. Peterson retired shortly after the shooting, was fired retroactively and charged a year later. “He’s not the only one who heard those shots and believe they were coming from a different location,” Eiglarsh said. Peterson’s attorney, Mark Eiglarsh, said there are 22 defense witnesses who will testify that they also thought the shots were coming from somewhere other than inside the classroom building. Prosecutors say Peterson’s actions show he knew the shots were coming from inside and that he could have prevented some of the shootings if he had confronted Cruz, who was armed with an AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle.
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