These Are the 12 Jurors Deciding the Fate of the Parkland School Shooter

Attorneys are set to give closing arguments on Tuesday in the death penalty trial for the convicted Parkland school shooter who killed 17 people and injured 17 others in the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Twelve jurors will be tasked with deciding whether Nikolas Cruz, 24, receives the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole. In order for the death penalty to be recommended, the jury must be unanimous in its decision.

The panel of seven men and five women was sworn in following a nearly three-month selection process.

The chosen jurors — with ages ranging from 24 to 59 — consist of two White males, three White females, two Black males, one Black female, two Hispanic males, one Hispanic female, and one Asian male.

Four of the jurors on the panel are registered Democrats and four are registered Republicans. Of the remaining four jurors, two are registered as no-party affiliates, and two remain unknown. Of these twelve, at least four jurors are gun owners.

Here's what we know about each of the 12 jurors:

Juror #1

• Age: 43
• Race: White
• Gender: Male
• Gun owner: Yes
• Party affiliation: Republican
• Profession: IT systems analyst (formerly worked in construction)
• Other details: Juror 1 is married to a mental health counselor. He said during jury selection that he had no opinion on the case and only remembers the original headlines.

Juror #2

• Age: 40s
• Race: Hispanic
• Gender: Male
• Gun owner: No
• Party affiliation: Unknown
• Profession: Vice president at a bank (former officer in the French military)

Juror #3

• Age: 29
• Race: White
• Gender: Male
• Gun owner: Unknown
• Party affiliation: Republican
• Profession: State probation officer (Army veteran)
• Other details: Juror 3 says he considers law enforcement to be "a difficult job." He said he had no strong opinion on the death penalty but realizes “some people are very passionate about it.” 

Juror #4

• Age: 29
• Race: Black
• Gender: Male
• Gun owner: Unknown
• Party affiliation: Democrat
• Profession: Stocking team leader for a retailer
• Other: Juror #4 said he has a cousin who knew Cruz in high school. He said that he could be fair about the death penalty, but “either way it goes, this person should get whatever they have coming to them.”

Juror #5

• Age: 38
• Race: Black
• Gender: Male
• Gun owner: Yes
• Party affiliation: None
• Profession: Computer technician for a municipal government
• Other details: While the defense tried to remove juror 5 from the panel due to an unpleasant experience he had with law enforcement, the judge sided with the state.

Juror #6

• Age: 33
• Race: Hispanic
• Gender: Female
• Gun owner: No
• Party affiliation: Democrat
• Profession: Medical claims adjuster
• Other details: Juror 6 said she has had no negative experiences with law enforcement. During jury selection, she said she is not opposed to the death penalty, but voting for it “would be difficult.”

Juror #7

• Age: 59
• Race: White
• Gender: Female
• Gun owner: No
• Party affiliation: Republican
• Profession: Library worker (formerly worked in government and churches)
• Other details: Juror 7 said she had a positive experience with mental health counseling and no negative experiences with law enforcement — even when her sons were arrested over a decade ago. During jury selection, she said that while she could vote for the death penalty, it “doesn't seem to be stopping any murders.”

Juror #8

• Age: 52
• Race: Black
• Gender: Female
• Gun owner: Yes
• Party affiliation: Democrat
• Profession: Vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion for a healthcare firm
• Other details: Juror 8 is a member of boards promoting mental health treatment and low-income healthcare. She believes law enforcement is "an honorable profession."

Juror #9

• Age: 24
• Race: White
• Gender: Female
• Gun owner: No
• Party affiliation: Republican
• Profession: Legal assistant (graduated from Florida State University in 2019)
• Other details: Juror 9 believes mental health counseling to be "helpful" and that law enforcement is "doing the best they can, given everything." During jury selection, she said the death penalty is appropriate in the most serious cases, but it shouldn't be automatic. “We need to look at everything.”

Juror #10

• Age: 35
• Race: Asian
• Gender: Male
• Gun owner: Unknown
• Party affiliation: None
• Profession: Immigration officer and attorney (Army veteran)
• Other: Juror 10 did not specifically say if he owned any guns, but said in the military, he qualified on a dozen different firearms.

Juror #11

• Age: 28
• Race: Hispanic
• Gender: Male
• Gun owner: Unknown
• Party affiliation: Unknown
• Profession: Works in his family's export business (studied business in college)
• Other details: Juror 11 says he has had an unpleasant experience with law enforcement. During jury selection, he said he has forgotten a lot of details about the Stoneman Douglas shooting.

Juror #12

• Age: 51
• Race: White
• Gender: Female
• Gun owner: Unknown
• Party affiliation: Democrat
• Profession: Compliance officer for a medical company
• Other details: Juror 12 says her father was a police chief. She said during jury selection that if she were the ruler of an island, she would not have the death penalty, but that she could vote for it.

Click here for complete coverage of the Parkland school shooting sentencing trial