Scot Peterson, the sheriff’s deputy vilified for failing to confront the Parkland school shooter, has begun receiving a state pension of $8,702.35 a month.
Peterson resigned and retired Feb. 22, a week after the massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where he waited outside as Nikolas Cruz killed 17 people and wounded 17 others.
Peterson began to receive his pension in April, according to the Florida Department of Management Services. He can receive the payments for the rest of his life.
The 55-year-old Peterson, a Broward deputy for 32 years, was paid $101,879.03 last year — $75,673.72 in base salary plus overtime and other compensation, according to sheriff’s office records. Until the shooting, he was considered a trusted school resource officer at Stoneman Douglas, according to annual reviews of his performance.
He was eligible to retire from the agency in July 2010 when he had 25 years of service, a sheriff’s office spokeswoman said Wednesday.
On Feb. 14, surveillance video showed Peterson waiting outside the school as Cruz prowled the halls with an AR-15 rifle. President Donald Trump branded Peterson a coward, and Sheriff Scott Israel began an investigation into his actions. Israel said Peterson should have “went in. Addressed the killer. Killed the killer.”
The investigation into Peterson’s response is ongoing, a sheriff’s office spokeswoman said Wednesday.
Parkland school police officer gets nearly $9,000/month pension
This is the officer who failed to confront the Parkland shooter.
