Accused Shooter Cruz Asked a Revealing Question Online

'How can I pretend to be a psychopath and get diagnosed as one?'
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 21, 2018 4:32 PM CST
Updated Dec 21, 2018 5:01 PM CST
Accused Shooter Cruz Asked a Revealing Question Online
Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz sits in the courtroom for a status check hearing at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2018.   (Amy Beth Bennett /South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP, Pool)

Accused Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz insists he heard the voice of a demon before his rampage. But a new 425-page police report suggests cops think he's putting on an act, reports the South Florida Sun Sentinel. The report notes that a month before the mass killing, Cruz went online and posed a jarring question on the Quora Q&A site: “I am neurotypical. How can I pretend to be a psychopath and get diagnosed as one?” And during an interview with lead detective John Curcio of the Broward County Sheriff's Office, Cruz seemed to be in distress at times, but the detective wasn't buying it. At one point, Cruz starts to hyperventilate, but Curcio writes that it "appears to be an act."

Curcio's report also notes that Cruz was "calm and rational" when first arrested. It was only while waiting for a school security guard to arrive to identify him that he switched gears. “Cruz then began to claim he was hearing voices of a demon and began to throw up,” the report states. He asked, "Where the f--- am I?” and “What happened?” Cruz's mental state could go a long way in determining whether he faces the death penalty. His public defender says he's willing to plead guilty and spend the rest of his life in prison if state prosecutors don't seek capital punishment. Meanwhile, NBC Miami reports that 78-year-old Warren Bond of Florida faces federal charges over an alleged death threat he mailed to the mother of Parkland survivor David Hogg, over her gun-control views. (Cruz reportedly attacked a jail guard.)

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