Florida School Superintendent Charged Following Investigation in Aftermath of 2018 Parkland Shooting

The superintendent of the public school district where the Parkland shootings took place years ago was arrested Wednesday and has been charged with perjury in connection with a criminal investigation.

Robert W. Runcie, 59, the superintendent of Broward County Public Schools, was charged with perjury for allegedly lying to a grand jury investigating “possible failures in following school-related safety laws," according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

Broward County is the sixth-largest school district in the country.

A second person, Barbara J. Myrick, 72, the district's general counsel, was also arrested and charged with unlawful disclosure of statewide grand jury proceedings.

Both are facing felony charges, according to The New York Times. They have both been released.

In February 2018, a heavily armed 19-year-old man walked into Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, his alma mater, and opened fire on teachers and students with a semiautomatic AR-15 rifle. He killed 17 people. The school was in a Florida suburb in the city of Parkland.

The aftermath of the shooting rattled the nation and sparked an investigation into school-related safety laws and allegations of mismanagement of funds for school safety initiatives.

These arrests are the latest in the devastation that surrounded Broward County ever since the 2018 shooting.

In a statement to the Times, a lawyer for Runcie said he would plead not guilty and continue in his role as superintendent. Runcie had reportedly "fully cooperated" during the investigation. Myrick did not respond to comment, the outlet said.

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