Sandy Hook victim's mother visits with Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz, his attorney says

• Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz's attorneys said he's been in contact with the mother of a Sandy Hook victim.
• Cruz pleaded guilty for the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Nikolas Cruz, the shooter who went on a deadly rampage at a high school in Florida in 2018, has been in contact with the mother of a Sandy Hook school shooting victim, his lawyers said at his trial over whether or not he will be put to death for his crimes.

Cruz, 23, pleaded guilty in October 2021 to 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted murder related to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida, which left 14 students and three staff members dead.

This is the penalty phase of Cruz's trial to determine if he will receive the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole.

In opening statements for the defense, lead public defender Melissa McNeill told jurors Monday that Cruz is a "damaged person" who is mentally ill and suffers from fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and antisocial personality disorder.

She said they would hear how Scarlett Lewis, whose 6-year-old son Jesse was killed during the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary shooting that left 27 people dead, including 20 children, "talks with and has video visitations" with him.

"You'll hear through those conversations that together, her and Nik are trying to find a way to prevent this from ever happening again," McNeill said in court on Monday.

Reached by Insider, Lewis said in a statement that she has visited with several school shooters in her "efforts to keep kids safe in schools."

"School shooters aren't born that way and I want to find out how we failed them, and what we can do to fortify our children to make good decisions and choose love rather than hatred," the statement read.

On August 2, Lewis also testified in a defamation trial against far-right conspiracy theorist and InfoWars founder Alex Jones. Lewis and Neil Heslin sued Jones for defamation over his debunked claims that the Sandy Hook shooting that killed their son was a hoax.

Jones was ordered to pay $45.2 million in punitive damages and $4.1 million in compensatory damages to Heslin and Lewis.

Lewis said in court that since the shooting she has dedicated her life to keeping kids safe.

"It's our responsibility," Lewis told the jury. "I used to think it was the school's responsibility. It's actually our responsibility, and I've dedicated my life to that."