Nikolas Cruz registered to vote in jail, angering parent of Parkland victim

School shooting gunman registered as Republican in July

Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz stares into the camera during a hearing, Sept. 26, 2018, at the Broward County courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A parent of one of the victims of the Parkland school shooting is criticizing a policy that allowed gunman Nikolas Cruz to register to vote while he awaits trial.

Andrew Pollack -- whose 17-year-old daughter, Meadow, was killed in the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in February -- said the move made him sick to his stomach.

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County records show Cruz registered as a Republican in July from his jail cell.

"Broward Sheriff Scott Israel let people into the jail to get him and other animals registered to vote," said Pollack, a frequent critic of Israel.

Cruz has confessed to killing 17 people and wounding more than a dozen others, but he has not been convicted. He is still eligible to vote while he awaits trail.

Pollack's tweet has retweeted by prominent conservative media personalities including "Fox & Friends" host Brian Kilmeade and NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch.

Broward Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright pushed back against Pollack's statement on Saturday.

She said the process is handled by the supervisor of elections office and the Sheriff's Office merely acts a mail courier between the inmate and the elections office.

"Inmates being registered to vote is nothing new. It doesn't have anything to do with the sheriff," Coleman-Wright said. "Taking away the voting rights of an eligible person awaiting trial is illegal."