♪ this is "nightline." tonight, national failure. >> somebody was outside, they didn't react properly under pressure or they were they weree >> president trump harsh words to the deputy who chose not to do anything. >> as a playoff that's your job. >> more red flags missed. dozens of police contacts involved with the shooter including this 911 call. >> i need someone here because i'm afraid he comes back he has a lot of weapons. >> plus, actress answera riff ear smith raising against the so called school purpose pipeline

taking on persona 18 real life characters from prison inmates. >> without that education i always felt less than. >> to civil rights leaders. >> never lose faith. keep the faith. >> but first the "nightline" five. number one in just 60

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good evening, thank you for joining us. tonight new layers of failure uncovering in the case of the florida school shooting. tips to the fbi. disturbing social media poefltipoeflstings and 911 calls. community members and teach erzbergrodeo and president trump teachers and president trump reacting to the news that an armed officer was on scene at the time of the massacre and chose not to enter the building. >> completely and toetally disgusted. >> shock and anger after this stunning admission. >> what i saw was a deputy arrive at the west side of building 12, take up a position, and he never went in. >> sheriff described how scot peterson an armed school resource deputy assigned to protect marjory stoneman douglas high school failed to take

action, he waited outside four minutes while the shooter was in the building. >> what should he have done? >> went in. addressed the killer. killed the killer. >> cops know it's their responsibility to go in it will. we all know in an active shooter situation in the first couple seconds is when most of the death occurs. >> i'm scot peterson been a police officer for 30 years. >> the deputy in question, 54-year-old scot peterson had wor worked at the school for eight years. >> he and i talked many times over the years. >> school internal documents painting a glowing picture in 2014 awarded school resource officer of the year commending him as reliable. >> i knew when i heard in the cafeteria the hairs on the back of the neck i said that never goes on. >> he is seen describing his response to security scenarios.

>> i ran to my trailer grabbed my can id, shorts and sneakers and ran to the cafeteria and sure enough were four males in the cafeteria saw me peeking through the glass, i chased them, i'm getting older -- >> peterson caught those teens but officials say on valentine's day he didding in. >> you don't think about it happening at school when it does you need to act as a police officer. >> faced as suspension peterson opted to resign and retire but told abc he did a good job in calling the exact location and getting units out there and adding first responders don't go into active shooting situations they have failed. >> it has to be something you have to understand. you can't run away from the danger. >> the response to peterson's lack of action has been swift. >> to hear he didn't do his job,

he signed up to protect our school. >> were you surprised. >> shocked that someone trained with a gun, you know, i don't know all of the ins and outs of the story but all of that is actually true then that's beyond comprehension. >> department scot peterson that's the indicates where someone who didn't act prop erly or they were coward. >> week and half after the trajectory eddie that claimed the life of 17 students and teach heer teachers, peterson's ibarra barra inaction coming into focus. tipster saying cruz was going to explode describing him as a

violent child who posted about firearms and isis and worries about him getting to a school and shooting the place up. >> we keep hearing every day about something new that was missed or something new that should have been done based on information that was reported to law enforcement. >> this was just one of dozen of concerned flagged to the authorities. >> since 2008 the broward shiffr sheriff's office was involved in 23 calls involving he or his brother. >> according to the sheriff the calls are still under review. >> yeah there was a fight in my house. a kid, and my son punching him. that's why he left the house i need someone here because i'm afraid he will come back, he has a lot of weapons and he put the gun to his brother head before it's not the first time. >> abc news obtained recordings

of the fright evaniening 911 ca the family who had taken in cruz after his mother died. >> he is going to get his weapons right now he's pissed off. >> soon after another call this one believed to be cruz calling 911 claiming he was the one attacked. >> hi i was just assaulted now. someone tried to attack me and say they were going to gut me if i came back. >> the caller then indicating he was distraut about the recent death of his mother. >> thing is i lost my mother couple days ago so i'm dealing with bunch of things right now. >> all this in addition to reports from class mates who told school officials about their concerns over and over. >> he talked about killing our parents, friends, boyfriends and girlfriends. >> lopez says she noticed disturbing signs from cruz from time to time. >> he would have knives in his

lunch box you skrant knives it had is a school he's like hey guys want some knives. >> and haunting media posts. >> he posted pictures of 15 or more firearms on his bed. it was just ordinary to him. >> so many questions still unanswered and as authorities acknowledge mistake after heart breaking mistake. >> this person wasn't stopped from legally purchasing a weapon. was not arrested. was not detained. and was never forced to turn in his weapons. >> in a surprise florida's governor announcing proposal for new gun control regulations. >> we will require all individuals purchasing firearms to be 21 or old. >> and proposed banning the sail of bump stocks. preventing the mentally from buying a gun. and requiring a law enforcement officer to be present in every public school. >> change is coming and it will come fast.

this is a time i believe we must all come together and even cross party lines. >> the govern's proposal a rare break with the president who believes specially trained educators are the best solution to end school shootings. >> i would rather have someone who wants to protect their students than someone who is standing outside and doesn't know the students. and the teacher would have shot the hell out of him before he knew what happened. >> a few hours later he doubled down. >> the security guard doesn't know the children, doesn't love the children. the teachers love their children their pupils their students. >> the fact is if you give a teacher a gun that they are allowed to take into class you have a host of issues. does that teacher know when they would be allowed to even pull the guchb out and point the gun to somebody. are we prepared to have a teacher go through the same tactical training and potentially make mistakes

similar to law enforcement officers. >> do you want to have a gun. >> dmo it's not a good idea. i'm trained to teach. i have 36 years here. guns are just too unsafe. >> for "nightline" from parkland, florida. >> next, the powerful performance sounding the alarm about what's been called the school to prison pipeline. to most people, i look like most people. but on the inside, i feel chronic, widespread pain. fibromyalgia may be invisible to others, but my pain is real. fibromyalgia is thought to be caused by overactive nerves. lyrica is believed to calm these nerves. i'm glad my doctor prescribed lyrica. for some, lyrica delivers effective relief for moderate to even severe fibromyalgia pain. and improves function. lyrica may cause serious allergic reactions, suicidal thoughts or actions. tell your doctor right away if you have these, new or worse depression,

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♪ they're super... ...but they can fly. ♪

united. helping superheroes fly. united. ♪ ♪ there are two types of people in the world. those who fear the future... and those who embrace it. the future is for the unafraid. ♪ ♪ ♪ a new film by anna

smith holds the about the systematic injustice plaguing black youth from school system to the penal system. the loop of reality. here's our reporter. >> they're port rates of brutality that gripped a nation. crying moms whose son's lives were cut smohort. >> i just want answers from the police department. >> for people of color these stories are jarring and moved many to action including an's di vrks e a smith from tv she spent most of her life on stage becoming real life characters who have experienced major events. in her one woman shows tackles issues like the race riots in

los angeles. >> one thing everyone's talking about why did it take 56 baton blows. >> now. >> what is the number one civil rights issue of the day. >> it is impossible to talk about the criminal justice system without talking about education. >> in her provocative new field "notes from the field" anna sounds the alarm on those caught in the nation's school to prison pipeline. >> can't wait for the leaders to make it better we have to make it better. >> too often kid who's are poor get kicked out of school and then end up in juvenile hall and then into cycles of prisons. >> and then the pipeline meaning they are kicked out of school brand you know it. >> right. >> she discovered those kids are often students of color and stunningly black students are system pended and expelled at rate threes times higher than white students.

the numbers are alarming. a black public school student is suspended every four seconds of the school day with a black child being arrested every 68 seconds. so anna took her cameras and outrage across the country interviewing 250 people with their experience in education and the criminal justice system like this inmate in a life after drug addiction. >> they just kicked me out of eighth grade. >> and this woman who boldly took down the confederate flag and was put under arrest. >> even if i didn't make it down the statement would still, you know, be made. >> you are in the legacy and the mantle of thoroughgoodthoroo marshall. >> anna sliding into the persona of 18 of those real life people.

>> like kevin moore who used phone to film the brutal arrest of a 25-year-old black man who fell into a coma while in police custody. >> i'm like dude they're tazing him. >> by then he was all bent up face down on his stomach, you could see the pain in the man's face. >> freddie grey would die a week later. >> was he shocked at the impact the video had. >> i don't think he knew what impact that video was going to have. >> i just felt like we need to record it, get the word out, this thing is happening. >> it's history. >> this is the oechnly weapon w have, the camera, it's the only thing we have that can protect us that's not illegal. >> during the eulogy at grey's funeral the pastor gives a rousing call to action.

>> this is not the time for us to be walking around with our pants hanging down past our behind. >> this is not the time for no respect for our history and legacy. >> one anna mirrors in the film. >> get your bloody self up and change this city. >> the film also shining a light on the harsh reality of police intelligen brutality of students of color where a student is seen violently thrown a crocross them for not putting away cellphone. >> these violent acts against children because they're perceived as being out of control. >> 18-year-old kenny shot it on her cellphone. >> i could not believe this was going often. >> is nobody going to help her. somebody record this put it on

snapchat. >> authorities charged nia with disturbing school and she was later released. >> has the cellphone been a game changer. >> it's huge. it's making real that people don't believe it that someone americans are victim to harassment. >> but other students sent to prison continue to remain there. according to the bureau of justice statistics more than 56% incourse rated are black or hispanic and nearly 70% never received a high school diploma inmates like dotson who was in prison nearly two decades. >> my former boyfriend shot and killed a guy who tried to rape me. they didn't consider it accomplice i got the same charge he did, first degree murder. >> as i sat there her calm thoughtfulness kind of made me feel like i was sitting with a

guru. >> i guess i can say i just wasn't connecting to everything because i wasn't given enough information to know that we all are connected somehow to every living breathing thing. >> she said i'm here for first degree murder. and i said well do you think that's fair. she started to cry. and she said. >> i think you talking about somebody's life. >> the film ultimately ends with hope and redemption with words of wisdom from congress john lewis. >> like dr. king is a we going to redeem the soul of america we first have to redeem ourselves. >> how did that interview affect you. >> major. john lewis is evidence of grace in the world. >> hold on. never give up. >> i get to use that beautiful language of john lewis to say to my audience.

>> never give in. never lose faith. keep the faith. >> for "nightline" i'm deborah roberts in new york. >> our thanks to deborah. "notes from the field" airs saturday night on hbo. and next the touching tribute to the florida school shooting victims by major league baseball today. >> announcer: abc news "nightline" brought to you by ford. ford. ♪ we the people... are defined by the things we share. and the ones we love. who never stop wondering what we'll do or where we'll go next. we the people who are better together than we are alone... are unstoppable. welcome to the entirely new expedition.

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♪ and finally tonight, the major league tribute, as the first spring training games get under way today every player taking the field putting their team cap aside and putting on sd, standing for stoneman douglas high school, chicago cubs tweeting this out from first baseman anthony rizzo a graduate from the school. >> amazing you see everyone honor what's going on right now. >> and inviting student-athletes to their spring training sessions. >> just being here watching

baseball practice throughout the week has been great. >> it has been a week of support and love all across the country. was the chinese philosophier who said being deeply loved gives you strength loving someone deeply gives you courage. thanks for watching "nightline" thanks for the company america good niept have a good weekend. od weekend.