Dylann Roof sentenced to death

A South Carolina jury took just three hours this afternoon to decide convicted murderer Dylann Roof deserved the death penalty. Roof killed nine members of a historically black church in Charleston on June 17, 2015.

The same jury convicted Roof in December of all 33 federal charges against him. He is the first person sentenced to death under federal hate crime laws.

During closing arguments this morning, Roof told jurors he still felt he “had to” commit the murders. At the time of the attack on the mid-week Bible study at Emanuel AME Church, Roof told his victims he hated African-Americans. He told FBI agents after his arrest he hoped the shooting would lead to a return of segregation or the start of a race war.

Roof acted as his own attorney during the sentencing phase of his trial. This morning, he told jurors he wouldn’t bother asking them to spare his life.

“I have the right to ask you to give me a life sentence, but I’m not sure what good it would do anyway,” he said.

He insisted throughout the trial that he didn’t suffer from mental illness. He also showed no remorse for his actions. In two separate evaluations, doctors determined Roof competent to stand trial and participate in his own defense.

In a statement issued after the verdict, Roof’s family said they will “struggle as long as we live” to understand why he killed so many people. They expressed grief for the victims and offered “sympathy to the many families he has hurt.” After the beginning of the trial, Roof’s family did not return to court.

Now that the federal trial has ended, Roof faces a state trial for the murders. Prosecutors also seek the death penalty in that case.