There were several of Cruz's peers who knew Cruz to express hatred toward specific races or social groups. Cruz had been known to make statements such as, "I wish all the Jews were dead," or, in reference to the shooting at the Pulse nightclub, "I'm glad they killed all those gay people." Another student said he knew that Cruz did not like black people and that he wanted to shoot them. Cruz also expressed an interest in hate groups such as Nazis, Hitler, and the KKK. He was known to use phrases such as "White Power." Several people spoke of seeing swastikas drawn on his personal belongings. (MSD 2019, s. 240)

Some of these same individuals referenced Cruz's interest in the military and firearms or other weapons. Cruz was known to post photographs of him wearing gas masks and body armor while holding weapons. Several witnesses spoke of seeing Cruz's social media posts, which showed him with firearms or knives. He was also known to bring knives to school, and some witnesses saw Cruz's guns (off-campus) first-hand. One student saw Cruz looking up on a school computer how to make a nail bomb. (MSD 2019, s. 240)

Cruz told one student, "I'm so tired of everyone being mean to me, I just can't take it, I want to shoot up the school." When the student confronted Cruz about this, Cruz said he was joking. (MSD 2019, s. 241)

A small number of Cruz's peers had information about Cruz being suicidal or depressed. Cruz had shown one of his classmates scars on his arm from when he cut himself. (MSD 2019, s. 241)

Investigators determined the statements of these students to be highly credible, particularly those of the first student. (MSD 2019, s. 243)