Convicted Murderer Dylann Roof’s Sentencing Hearing

Jan 4

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On December 15, 2016, a jury in Dylann Roof’s federal trial deliberated less than 2 hours, and convicted him on all counts of hate crimes, obstruction of religion and weapons charges.  This blog followed the trial.

The same jury panel of nine Whites people and three Blacks reconvened today to decide whether Roof is sentenced to death or life in prison without parole.

Originally scheduled to begin on January 3, 2017, Dylann Roof asked that his sentencing trial be delayed for a day.  His reason was because he spent the weekend undergoing a competency evaluation.  Federal District Court Judge Gergel has now, twice, found Roof competent to represent himself.

Roof’s competency took focus in his opening statement today when he told the jury;

“The point is I’m not going to lie to you,” Roof said. “There’s nothing wrong with me psychologically.”

Roof also made a statement that he felt betrayed.  Coupled with things that he wrote in his journal, it paints the idea that Roof’s desire to murder Blacks was influenced by other White Supremacists who he assumed would do the same.

At today’s hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Williams focused on those who died in the shooting, and on what he called Roof’s lack of regret.  Federal prosecutors entered into evidence photos of the deceased.  The Exhibits include Exhibit 750, a voice mail of the Rev. Pinckney; and Exhibit 746, a video of Rev. Pinckney introducing himself to a group in the church, and speaking on the church’s background.  The Exhibits are available on the court’s website.

Federal prosecutors introduced Roof’s journal, which he kept in jail.  It was central to prosecutor’s asking the jury to decide to sentence Roof to the death penalty.  Six weeks after murdering the nine people, Roof wrote:

“I did not regret what I did. I am not sorry. I do feel sorry for the innocent white people that are killed daily at the hands of the lower races.”

“I created the biggest wave I could. I did all I can do, now it is in the hands of my brothers.”

The Washington Post reports on the testimony of Jennifer Pinckney, wife of the Rev. Clementa C. Pinckney, who heard Roof gun down her husband as she hid in an office with their daughter.  She testified of hearing Roof speak as he tried opening the locked door to the office.

The federal courts do not allow cameras or video.  After each day’s hearing has concluded, reporters recap the day’s activities.  The following are two videos from today’s hearing.

 

 

I’ll keep the hearings updated in the comment section below.

Posted on 01/04/2017, in Emmanuel 9, Trial Videos and tagged , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. 61 Comments.

  1. Mr. Militant Negro | 01/04/2017 at 8:11 pm

    Reblogged this on The Militant Negro™.

    Liked by 4 people

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  2. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/04/2017 at 9:20 pm

    My prayers are with the loved ones of the Emanuel Nine. May God’s loving presence give them strength for all they are having to go through as they testify.

    It is so heartbreaking hearing about the effect of the loss of their loved ones on them.

    Liked by 4 people

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  3. davidprosser | 01/04/2017 at 11:39 pm

    No-one can doubt there’s pure evil in the world when they listen to the rhetoric of these white supremacists.A vet would put down a dog as savage as this without second thoughts.
    xxx Huge Hugs xxx

    Liked by 5 people

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  4. Iridacea | 01/05/2017 at 12:30 am

    Thank you for the report.
    It is a truly fearsome thing that any person could be so filled with hate and evilness to have been compelled to murder those beautiful souls, and to experience no remorse.
    May the families effected be surrounded by love and kindness to ease their suffering. May the jurors be guided by justice herself.

    Liked by 4 people

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    • Xena | 01/05/2017 at 1:06 am

      Hi Iris. Happy to meet you. I just visited your blog and want to say “thank you.” Thank you for sharing your journey.

      Of course, you’re correct about Roof being filled with hate and evil. What concerns me, is that I’m having a difficult time reconciling how he became entrenched in White Supremacist ideologies, yet targeted Blacks who do not fit the stereotype of those ideologies. For example, why didn’t Roof take his big-bad-White-superior butt to Chicago’s Southside and target Black gang leaders?

      The coward went into a church so it was like shooting fish in a barrel.

      I don’t believe in the death penalty. With Roof, since he’s already demonstrating the feelings of being betrayed, abandoned, having no family or friends to call as witnesses for why he shouldn’t be sentenced to death, he should spend the rest of his miserable life thinking about that every single day.

      Liked by 7 people

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      • lady2soothe | 01/05/2017 at 2:32 am

        I so totally agree with you Xena,,, Death ends it all and life behind bars without the possibility of parole; sitting day in and day out in life’s purgatory just waiting to grow old enough to pass into the inferno he so deserves,

        Liked by 4 people

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        • Xena | 01/05/2017 at 6:28 am

          Hey Lady!
          He has thrown his life away, whether in or out of his flesh. There have been no reports on his mom’s health. She had a heart attack the first day of trial. His dad is no doubt kicking himself for giving him money for a gun for his birthday.

          Liked by 3 people

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  5. mindyme62 | 01/05/2017 at 3:07 am

    It was such a cowardly act. He’s not ‘all there’ no matter how much he wants to believe he is.

    Liked by 3 people

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    • Xena | 01/05/2017 at 6:24 am

      Mindyme,
      It’s said that there’s a thin line between genius and insanity. An expert said that in spite of Roof being smart, he lacked judgment. He dropped out of school in the 9th grade. At that age, they lack judgment to make such a decision. There is more to attending school than learning from books and teachers. There is also development of social skills and at graduation, a sense of appreciation and accomplishment.

      Roof abandoned that important part of life, which is probably why he thought he could earn recognition from White Supremacists and be appointed Grand Dragon. He clearly has a personality dysfunction.

      Liked by 3 people

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      • mindyme62 | 01/05/2017 at 6:54 am

        He wrote that he wasn’t ‘raised this way’. He learned this hate through propaganda spewed by those who wish to create division and fear.

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        • Xena | 01/05/2017 at 7:14 am

          Mindyme,
          Indeed. I still think his parents were enablers to his poor judgment and dysfunctional thinking process when they let him drop out of school at the age of 13-14. At the age of 17, he sat in their house on the internet reading that propaganda, hateful garbage. At the age of 21, his dad trusted his judgment to make it possible for him to purchase a gun. Several months later, he was arrested for killing 9 people just because of their race.

          Liked by 1 person

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  6. shyloh | 01/05/2017 at 4:55 am

    I find it sort of funny that when people kill others, they don’t want to die. Like they are owed something. I agree, he needs to spend the rest of his life with the images he caused in that church. If it were left up to me. I’d plaster their pictures all over his cell. What a messed up soul…

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
    • Xena | 01/05/2017 at 6:10 am

      Shyloh,

      “I’d plaster their pictures all over his cell.”

      Absolutely — large enough to cover the entire cell. He might be served some benefit from the writings he read that influenced him too, so he can think about those people still being free to talk their hate, while he’s sitting in prison for the rest of his life because of believing it.

      Liked by 2 people

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    • mindyme62 | 01/05/2017 at 8:09 am

      Has he said he doesn’t want to die? I think he does. To be a martyr for his f’ed up cause.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
  7. Xena | 01/05/2017 at 6:43 am

    Liked by 2 people

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  8. Xena | 01/05/2017 at 6:50 am

    Some criminal defendants who act as their own lawyers want a stage to promote an ideology; some apparently want the spotlight or think they can fare better than a real lawyer; some are too controlling to let anyone else be in charge; some are too paranoid to trust lawyers; and some are just delusional.

    Ego, Ideology, Paranoia: Why Do Killers Represent Themselves?

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    • mindyme62 | 01/05/2017 at 7:11 am

      I think he thinks he’s setting himself up for an appeal.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply
      • Xena | 01/05/2017 at 7:22 am

        He could very well be thinking that if he gets the death penalty. I’ve not read many appeals to death sentencing, but do remember one where the defendant claimed that his attorney did not conduct discovery to present the jury with mitigating factors. Well, Roof has blown that possibility by representing himself. Now, if he wants to appeal his conviction in effort to vacate his sentencing, he’ll be wasting the appellate court’s time.

        Liked by 2 people

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      • Xena | 01/06/2017 at 9:24 am

        Check page 22 of the following. They are Roof’s writings while he was in jail. It tells us why he doesn’t want to be sentenced to death. He thinks that if he lives, that he will eventually be pardoned.

        Click to access GX500.pdf

        Liked by 2 people

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  9. mindyme62 | 01/05/2017 at 7:07 am

    Dylann Roof’s dad Franklin.

    Like

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  11. Dr. Rex | 01/05/2017 at 7:58 am

    Reblogged this on It Is What It Is and commented:
    Need to keep following the results of this crime, jury’s decision and the sentence. This was a horrible crime indeed!

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
  12. Dr. Rex | 01/05/2017 at 8:06 am

    Hi there my dear friend! Thank you for this post … I still can’t handle this awful event!
    It has been a while since we’ve spoken but I’ve always been around. I hope all is well with you and yours.

    There’s a couple of things I’d like to talk to you about. I’m not sure I still have your email or other way of communicating. Would you be so kind as to refresh this for me? Maybe even a phone call, at your convenience?

    Please, let me know when you have a chance! Thank you. Have a great day! ❤

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  13. Xena | 01/05/2017 at 11:32 am

    Thursday’s hearing;

    Liked by 2 people

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  14. Xena | 01/05/2017 at 12:00 pm

    Raw, emotional testimony continued this morning from relatives and friends of those killed in the Emanuel AME Church massacre, prompting complaints from Dylann Roof’s former attorney that the trial’s penalty phase was turning into a memorial service, not a sentencing hearing.

    Relatives of Myra Thompson, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton and DePayne Middleton-Doctor took the witness stand to tell the 12-member jury about the lives of the three women who were among nine worshipers killed by Roof on June 17, 2015. They recalled telling details and tender moments as they helped prosecutors put a human face on the victims and convey the deep losses Roof’s actions brought about.

    David Bruck, Roof’s former attorney who is now in a relegated advisory role, contended that Roof is incapable of handling his own defense

    U.S. Attorney Jay Richardson countered that Roof can only blame himself. “He was the one who chose to kill nine good people, and people are entitled to tell the jury about it.”

    Judge Gergel said he is satisfied that Roof has the capacity to raise objections if he should choose to do so, but that’s his call to make.

    Liked by 3 people

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  15. mindyme62 | 01/05/2017 at 12:46 pm

    “David Bruck, Roof’s former attorney who is now in a relegated advisory role, contended that Roof is incapable of handling his own defense

    U.S. Attorney Jay Richardson countered that Roof can only blame himself. “He was the one who chose to kill nine good people, and people are entitled to tell the jury about it.”

    Judge Gergel said he is satisfied that Roof has the capacity to raise objections if he should choose to do so, but that’s his call to make.”

    Good call!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  16. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/05/2017 at 10:35 pm

    Beautiful portrait paintings of the Emanuel Nine can be found in the following article:

    “Celebrating Life and Mourning Loss
    We remember the Emanuel Nine through the portraits of nine artists at Charleston, N.C.’s Principle Gallery.”

    http://www.artistsnetwork.com/art-blogs/the-artists-magazine-blog/portraits-emanuel-nine-mourning-remembering

    Liked by 3 people

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  17. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/06/2017 at 8:03 am

    You can see more of the quilts if you watch the news video found in this article:

    “Prayer quilts memorialize church shooting victims”

    http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/prayer-quilts-memorialize-church-shooting-victims/247532843

    Liked by 2 people

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  18. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/06/2017 at 8:10 am

    Liked by 3 people

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  19. Xena | 01/06/2017 at 9:13 am

    Like

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  20. Xena | 01/06/2017 at 10:58 am

    Friday update:

    Like

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  22. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/06/2017 at 11:41 am

    Liked by 1 person

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  23. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/06/2017 at 11:43 am

    Liked by 1 person

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  24. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/06/2017 at 11:44 am

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  25. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/06/2017 at 11:45 am

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  26. Madelyn Griffith-Haynie, MCC, SCAC | 01/06/2017 at 12:54 pm

    As I fight feelings of sorrow and hate myself, I have little to add here but my gratitude to you for keeping us informed – and prayers of support and healing for those grieving the deaths of their friends and family members. I am grateful that they will soon be able to close the trial chapter of these unthinkable and indefensible cold-blooded murders so they can focus on supporting each other as they attempt to heal.

    As you disclosed in a comment – I don’t believe in the death penalty either. If murder is wrong – and I believe it IS – then murdering murderers cannot be our response. It is logically, morally and spiritually indefensible on our parts to perpetuate the evil of taking a life with more of the same.

    We must fight the urge to – calmly OR with horror and rage in our hearts – sit in rooms removed and decide it is okay that we deliberate and pass laws about situations where we are allowed to kill others as we judge impassioned horrors of all sorts as we defend the righteousness of our own actions in response.

    Life with NO possibility of parole is what’s called for in response to these murders. Remove Roof from society as a further threat, leave him no option but to reflect on his actions for the rest of his life, and let God decide his fate as we ALL attempt to heal from this horrible chapter in the history of the human race.

    xx,
    mgh
    (Madelyn Griffith-Haynie – ADDandSoMuchMore dot com)
    – ADD Coach Training Field founder; ADD Coaching co-founder –
    “It takes a village to transform a world!”

    Liked by 2 people

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    • Xena | 01/07/2017 at 1:06 am

      Madelyn,
      You put in words what my heart and mind feels. Thanks so much for the comment.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply
      • Madelyn Griffith-Haynie, MCC, SCAC | 01/07/2017 at 1:22 am

        Thank you for seconding my thoughts – and for appreciating the sentiment.

        I hesitated for some time after writing my comment before publishing. I didn’t (and don’t) want to start a “but he deserves to die” flame war in your comments section – nor do I have time to “defend” my views. Obviously I decided that I was called to ring in never-the-less, so I clicked.

        Our world is far too mean and hard already. I think it needs to take a step back from the eye-for-an-eye edge.
        xx,
        mgh

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        • Xena | 01/07/2017 at 10:34 am

          Madelyn,
          There’s no reason to hesitate sharing your heart here. From the beginning of this blog in August 2012, there were participants who shared their anger and disgust with people who kill. By way of death penalty or some other means, they would like to see killers dead. Those participants also know that I’m a pacifist. Not once in all these years has anyone tried to influence the other to change their opinion. For the most part, everyone here is respectful of each other. If I see things flaming, I step-in.

          Liked by 1 person

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          • Madelyn Griffith-Haynie, MCC, SCAC | 01/07/2017 at 11:30 am

            Good to know, thanks. I guess my beliefs fall under the pacifist banner as well – though I’ve always thought of them simply as ethics. I can understand the emotional reactions of others (and sometimes react similarly to much of what I read online and see in the news, and have experienced personally), but I stop at embracing actions that follow those thoughts.
            xx,
            mgh

            Liked by 1 person

  27. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/09/2017 at 11:50 am

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  28. Xena | 01/09/2017 at 12:16 pm

    Monday, Jan. 9, 2017

    After four days of testimony, prosecutors rested their death penalty case Monday against convicted Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof. More than a dozen people took the witness stand in the trial’s penalty phrase.

    Roof presented no defense.

    This afternoon, prosecutors, the judge and Roof will do over jury instructions. The jury is expected to start deliberating on Roof’s sentencing tomorrow.

    Liked by 1 person

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  29. Xena | 01/09/2017 at 12:22 pm

    Roof’s State trial has been postponed indefinitely.

    Liked by 1 person

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  31. Xena | 01/10/2017 at 12:10 pm

    Dylann Roof told a federal jury this morning that prosecutors don’t understand him or the meaning of hate in their quest to put him to death for killing nine black worshipers at Emanuel AME Church in June 2015.

    “Anyone, including the prosecution, who thinks I am filled with hate has no idea what real hate is,” Roof said, speaking from a courtroom podium during his closing argument. “They don’t know anything about hate.

    “They don’t know what real real hatred looks like,” the 22-year-old white supremacist said in a flat, hollow voice. “They think they do, but they don’t really.

    http://www.postandcourier.com/church_shooting/they-don-t-know-what-real-hatred-looks-like-dylann/article_3c24cc44-d729-11e6-9e5d-2f037e89bddc.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_campaign=user-share

    Very interesting psychology. He didn’t plan to, and carry out the murder of 9 people because he hates the color of their skin, but because of his love for the White race.

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  32. yahtzeebutterfly | 01/10/2017 at 1:00 pm

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