Boy Shooter's Parents Speak
One week after 13-year-old Nathaniel Brazill allegedly murdered his teacher, Barry Grunow, a Florida grand jury is still considering whether the honor student should be tried as a juvenile or an adult.
From Boynton Beach, Florida, Nathaniel's parents, Nate Brazill and Polly Powell, spoke with anchor Russ Mitchell on The Early Show Friday morning.
When asked what she wanted America to know about her son, who remains in custody, Powell called him a great kid. "He's playful, he's caring and he loves people," she said.
Powell said it's hard to describe the boy's state of mind after an incident like this has occurred. She said she blames herself, in part, for what happened.
"Because I'm the mother and I was there with him, you know, all the time. Any mother that has to face this position, you will analyze yourself and analyze yourself and blame yourself," she said.
"Because you're there with your child and you're trying to do your best to raise him, teach him great morals and to respect others, and it's hard not to blame yourself," Powell said.
"You just search, search your soul and when you have finished searching your soul and you can't find anything wrong with yourself, the only thing you have [left] to do is just fall down on your knees and ask God to help you, just give you some reason," she added.
As for reports that Nathaniel had showed the gun used in the shooting to classmates days before the incident, Ms. Powell had a question.
"Why didn't they come to me?" she asked. "I've been to the school a couple of times. A lot of the kids there know my face."
And she added, "Parents, talk to your children. Tell them if any child is showing you a gun or saying anything out of the way, please children, tell your parents."
Nathaniel's father, Nate Brazill, described what he did when he met with his son after Grunow was killed.
"I just mainly reached out to him and embraced him and just told him that we loved him and we're gonna be fine," Brazill said.
Brazill said he believes his son's original intent was to show the gun to some girls at the school whom he would be seeing for the last time before the summer break.
As for whether his son should be tried as an adult, Brazill argued against it. "I think my son should be punished for what he has done, but let's punish him as a child, because that's what he is," he said.
Nathaniel's defense attorney, Randy Berman was also interviewed. Berman was asked to respond to the state's attorney's claim that the juvenile justice system's punishment amounts to a slap on the wrist.
"We've been talking about the disparity regarding the punishment for an adult, which could result in life with no parole, and the juvenile justice system which would allow for maybe a couple of years," Berman said. "It was heartening today to hear that a local state senator, Ron Klein, wants to onvene our Florida legislature as quick as possible to create a blended sentence that other states have used and implemented."
Berman said while he thinks Nathaniel understands the charges against him, he doesn't believe the boy contemplates the prospect of life in prison without parole, until he dies. That's why Berman favors the blended sentence.
"This blended sentence would consider the age of the children in serious crimes and give us a little more ability to be flexible and for judges to have discretion in sentencing children who are charged with serious crimes as opposed to the life sentences that were meant to be used for hardened criminals," he said.
Nate Brazill said he has already forgiven his son for shooting Grunow, saying "forgiveness is a part of healing."
Nathaniel's mother said she wants Grunow's family to know she is truly sorry for what has happened to him and his family as a result of the shooting.
"I just hope [his widow] can find it in her heart to someday forgive Nathaniel for what he has done and [I want to] let her know I truly feel her pain," she said.
By CBSnews.com Producer David Leslie