TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—The judge who oversaw the sentencing of the Parkland massacre gunman was removed from another death penalty murder case Thursday by the Florida Supreme Court, which agreed she showed unfair sympathy for prosecutors in the Parkland school shooting case.
The court removed Judge Elizabeth Scherer from overseeing any post-conviction proceedings for Randy Tundidor, who was sentenced to death for the 2019 murder of his Broward County landlord and is appealing his case.
Justices cited Scherer’s chummy interactions with prosecutors who were seeking the death penalty against Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz during sentencing.
“Immediately after sentencing Cruz, Judge Scherer left the bench and, while still in her judicial robe, exchanged hugs with the victims’ families and members of the prosecution team,” the justices said in their unanimous decision….