Parkland families applaud the arrest of the resource officer of the Scot Peterson School: "That's the only thing we wanted"

Many families of the 17 people killed in last year's school shootings in Parkland, Florida, applaud the arrest of the man whose job it was to keep students safe. Former Florida MP Scot Peterson, the only resource officer at the armed school to protect students, faces a number of charges, including neglect of children.

Peterson's lawyer said the charges were "politically motivated" and demanded that they be "immediately fired". But some parents think that he should have taken action instead of going to the shelter.

"[The arrest] is a step towards more responsibility for letting my daughter be murdered ", said Andrew Pollack, who lost his daughter, Meadow.

After more than a year of demanding that Peterson be held responsible as a result of one of the worst shootings in the country, the relatives of the 17 students and staff killed at the police station were killed. Marjory Stoneman High School Douglas expressed some relief on Tuesday.

"It's absolutely a nightmare," said Max Schachter, who lost his son Alex. "And that's the only thing we wanted, the only thing we fought for."

Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter, Jaime, died, tweeted: "… rot in hell … you could have saved some of the 17" after Peterson's arrest.

Peterson was indicted following a 15-month investigation. Aged 56, he was charged with 11 counts, including child negligence, culpable negligence and perjury.

Surveillance footage shows that Peterson never clashed with the 19-year-old gunman during the February 2018 shootout. Instead, a commission report says he's been hiding for about 48 minutes after the first shots. Peterson could be heard by radio for backup during the rampage.

"It's very painful for me to know that he had a gun, he was supposed to act," said Lori Alhadeff, who lost his daughter Alyssa. "He had a duty to act – that was his job."

"There is a difference between cowardice and criminal activity," said Richard Swearingen, commissioner of the Florida law enforcement department. "I think what you have found here is that they are examples of both."

In an interview granted a year ago, Peterson said that he was not the only one responsible.

"I've never had the opportunity – I never even thought, even for a moment, to be scared or to be a coward because I was doing things all the time," he said. he told NBC in Today.

Peterson's lawyer stated that his client could not be sued for child negligence charges because he was not a "helper" student, such as a parent.

Peterson was jailed on $ 102,000 bail. The charges against him are punishable by up to 100 years' imprisonment.