Dylann Roof
(Charleston County Sheriff's Office via AP, File)

By Meg Kinnard and Denise Lavoie, AP

A federal appeals court Wednesday upheld Dylann Roof’s conviction and death sentence for the 2015 racist slayings of nine members of a Black South Carolina congregation, saying the legal record cannot even capture the “full horror” of what he did.

A unanimous three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond rejected arguments that the young white man should have been ruled incompetent to stand trial in the shootings at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.

In 2017, Roof became the first person in the U.S. sentenced to death for a federal hate crime. Authorities have said Roof opened fire during the closing prayer of a Bible study at the church, raining down dozens of bullets on those assembled. He was 21 at the time.

In his appeal, Roof’s attorneys argued that he was wrongly allowed to represent himself during sentencing, a critical phase of his trial. Roof successfully prevented jurors from hearing evidence about his mental health, “under the delusion,” his attorneys argued, that “he would be rescued from prison by white-nationalists — but only, bizarrely, if he kept his mental-impairments out of the public record.”

Charleston Church Shooting Dylann Roof
Dylann Roof (Grace Beahm/The Post And Courier via AP, Pool, File)

Roof’s lawyers said his convictions and death sentence should be vacated or his case should be sent back to court for a “proper competency evaluation.”

The 4th Circuit found that the trial judge did not commit an error when he found Roof was competent to stand trial and issued a scathing rebuke of Roof’s crimes.

“Dylann Roof murdered African Americans at their church, during their Bible-study and worship. They had welcomed him. He slaughtered them. He did so with the express intent of terrorizing not just his immediate victims at the historically important Mother Emanuel Church, but as many similar people as would hear of the mass murder,” the panel wrote in is ruling.

“No cold record or careful parsing of statutes and precedents can capture the full horror of what Roof did. His crimes qualify him for the harshest penalty that a just society can impose,” the judges wrote.

One of Roof’s attorneys, Margaret Alice-Anne Farrand, a deputy federal public defender, declined to comment on the ruling. Roof’s other attorneys did not immediately respond to emailed requests seeking comment.

Dylann Roof
(AP Photo/Chuck Burton, File)

The Rev. Kylon Middleton, a close friend of Mother Emanuel Pastor Clementa Pinckney, a state senator who was killed in the massacre, said Roof’s appeal reopened some of the psychological wounds felt by loved ones of the victims and survivors. Middleton said he is personally opposed to the death penalty, but had accepted that as the sentence Roof received.

“We just want whatever the consequence or the justice that had been delivered based on the court’s ruling to be final, period,” Middleton said.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan Williams, one of the lead prosecutors on the case, said the mass shooting was one of the worst events in South Carolina’s history.

“Our office is grateful for the decision of the court, a decision that ensures, as the Court stated, that ‘the harshest penalty a just society can impose’ is indeed imposed,” Williams said in a statement.

All of the judges in the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers South Carolina, recused themselves from hearing Roof’s appeal; one of their own, Judge Jay Richardson, prosecuted Roof’s case as an assistant U.S. Attorney. The panel that heard arguments in May and issued the ruling on Wednesday was comprised of judges from several other appellate circuits.

Following his federal trial, Roof was given nine consecutive life sentences after pleading guilty in 2017 to state murder charges, leaving him to await execution in a federal prison and sparing his victims and their families the burden of a second trial.

Last month, however, Attorney General Merrick Garland issued a moratorium and halted all federal executions while the Justice Department conducts a review of its execution policies and procedures. The review comes after a historic run of capital punishment at the end of the Trump administration, which carried out 13 executions in six months. A federal lawsuit has also been filed over the execution protocols — including the risk of pain and suffering associated with the use of pentobarbital, the drug used for lethal injection.

President Joe Biden as a candidate said he’d work to end federal executions. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in March that he continues to have “grave concerns” about it.

Biden has connections to the case. As vice president, Biden attended the funeral for one of those slain, state Sen. Clementa Pinckney, who also pastored the congregation. During his 2020 presidential campaign, Biden frequently referenced the shooting, saying that a visit to Mother Emanuel helped him heal in the aftermath of the death of his son, Beau.

Roof’s attorneys could ask the full 4th Circuit to reconsider the panel’s ruling. If unsuccessful in his direct appeal, Roof could file what’s known as a 2255 appeal, or a request that the trial court review the constitutionality of his conviction and sentence. He could also petition the U.S. Supreme Court or seek a presidential pardon.

115 COMMENTS

  1. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A HATE CRIME. That entire notion opens cans of worms that will have horrible repercussions down the line.

    Now that that is out of the way, fry this murderous piece of shit. Today please. God bless those people.

    • Correct MURDER is a State crime in which the fedgov has NO legitimate interest.

      S. Carolina has death penalty. If he is guilty USE IT.

      • “If he is guilty.. “

        Really? So you think the jury and judge somehow made an error and he might not be guilty? And the appeals court that concurred, you think they might be wrong and Dylan roof might not be guilty?

        Thanks for your interesting perspective, I think I’ll go wash my hands with bleach now.

        • Just because he did it may not make him guilty under the law. If he was/is impaired, maybe he needs to be put away for the criminally insane.
          I know that is a stretch, but many have murdered and gotten off of death row. I am not saying that he should, but I was not on the jury or part of the trial.

        • Tell us your opinion regarding SCOTUS decision that minors cannot be put to death for murders they commit. Lefturds always sing out of all their orifices.

        • If he is that criminally insane, the community of humans need to execute him IMMEDIATELY, before he finds another opportunity to demonstrate it. Like a rabid dog.

    • Choose death…….. The hate crime statute should be found unconstitutional. There is no law that prohibits feelings. Hating is something to be avoided but is not truly illegal. Seems like a double jeopardy thing to me. As far as this scum is concerned , he should have been publicly hung long ago,

      • quote————– Hating is something to be avoided but is not truly illegal. ————-quote

        A totally ridiculous statement bordering on pure insanity. Obviously You flunked history classes. Fear leads to hate and hate leads to violence and mass murder. It is one of primary reasons that Critical Race Theory was introduced in schools so that the poisonous rhetoric that children hear from Far Right Parents or on the internet can be challenged in an educational setting. Do you think Dylann Roof became a Racist while living in a vacuum without the brainwashing of racist remarks and hate that he heard at home, on the internet or in Right Wing news outlets.

        In civilized countries racist speech on the internet, in news papers and in schools is not tolerated. If you ever wondered why look no further than Dylann Roof.

        Hitler made hate speech legal and desirable and the world did not live happily ever after. Of course educated people do not have to be told this.

        • Dacian; I absolutely hate greasy food and that has yet to lead to fear much less murder.

          You know Hitler hated people smoking cigarettes don’t you? Does an aversion to using tobacco lead to fascism?

          Over the years I’ve arrested people for everything you can think of but I have yet to arrest anyone for a thought crime.

        • quote————–Over the years I’ve arrested people for everything you can think of but I have yet to arrest anyone for a thought crime————quote

          We were not speaking of private thoughts genius boy were were discussing openly hateful racist rhetoric. Looks like you flunked World History Class too.

        • And ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the most glaring example of “hate speech”…

          Dacian says , quote————–We were not speaking of private thoughts genius boy were were discussing openly hateful racist rhetoric. Looks like you flunked World History Class too.————quote

        • Openly hateful racist rhetoric is protected political speech and I wouldn’t arrest someone for that either. Back to an earlier point you made, you wanted the Stasi or gestapo to come interviews me because you didn’t like things that I posted on the internet. I say gestapo or Stasi because no local law enforcement officer in the United States would do what you’re suggesting. A few of the alphabet agencies from the federal end of law enforcement would but they are simple apparatchiks and not real peace officers.

        • Dacian, you should know all about hate. You hate Nazis and Fascists, which just happen to be those you disagree with. You also hate yourself for your white first world privilege, which you then project on to those you’ve labelled as Nazis and Fascists.

        • there’s hate speech…and then there’s the truth..some folks just can’t seem to tell the difference….

        • to Bill

          quote————–Openly hateful racist rhetoric is protected political speech and I wouldn’t arrest someone for that either.————quote

          Like most of the radical Far Right you constantly scream that your Constitutional Rights are unlimited. Wrong. Hate Speech is used to convict and sentence people to far longer terms in prison when they commit a crime while using hate speech. I might add civilized countries come down hard on racists who use hate speech in public or on the internet. Educated people know what hate speech leads to and they find ways to discourage it by filing charges related to it or even unrelated to it. Even the far right who love to used hate speech often do get the message after sitting in a jail cell.

          I once asked a Cop if he would arrest me if I went down town with a bag of money to put in the bank but was openly carrying a firearm (which was legal but largely unknown in my state back in the distant past) The Cop said he knew it was legal but since he did not like open carry would arrest me on a variety of other trumped up charges including inducing panic. Again your perceived rights and your actual rights are often very, very different. The authorities often make up the law as they go along because they know most people neither have the time or money to fight them in court.

          And of course there are now cell phone cameras and people lose their jobs when their racist rants get put all over the news media. Again perceived Constitutional rights and actual Constitutional rights are often two very different realities. It is the public norms that often trump Constitutional rights even in the courts even in times long past. Have you ever heard of the Dred Scot case? That was a good example of public norms v/s Constitutional rights influencing the corrupt courts decision. Gun laws are another when it comes to public sentiments v/s 2A.

          Again if you think you have unlimited Constitutional rights try and yell fire in a theater and after people get trampled to death not end up in prison. You might also announce in the local paper you are building an atomic bomb to emphasize your 2A rights or restoring a German 88mm cannon. See how well that goes over.

        • Yeah in civilized countries like Hitler’s Germany and Stalin’s Russia. Thanks comrade. We all know what book you sing from.

        • Dacian:

          Seek help. Your party membership is hsowing. Some BLM guy must have smacked you up the side of the head by mistake.

        • dacian, you one sick puppy, dude. You need to go climb a mountain or something, to keep you away from actual people.

        • I was a driver for a charity group that had a contract through the state to provide services to inmates and their families.

          I wasn’t always a conservative. But eventually we have to grow up or do our ‘Peter Pan’ until it just looks silly.

          Look in the mirror for an example.

        • Between the prison and doing some years as a para transit driver , SS Shutze dacian, I saw a lot of guys just like you. Unable to function in the real world.

          I’ve asked you before. Where on the spectrum are you?

        • Not worth a rats ass.
          I’m staying up top and eating crackers.
          Them guys, whew, freaky bad.
          I believe it was an Australian company that started the whole tunnel rat thing.
          115th Kangaroos?

    • No one really cares, people in prison just don’t associate with crazy people if they can avoid it. He just won’t have many if any friends.

      I still don’t understand giving him the death penalty for a mostly peaceful mass shooting. Ofthe 10 people involved only 10% of them committed a crime and that hardly warrants a death penalty……

      • quote—————I still don’t understand giving him the death penalty for a mostly peaceful mass shooting. ————-quote

        Let us hope law enforcement is reading your posts. They need to pay you a visit and interview you very soon.

        • Dacian; law enforcement most definitely is reading my post because someone in law enforcement is writing the post but I doubt LE would interview me because that would be me interviewing myself. Do you not understand sarcasm when you read it?

      • Look who is talking JWM, the nut case who advocates mass murder of his political opponents. Hitler and Trump also made the same statements. You have threatened me so many times with death I have lost count and it has become almost boring.. You should be on law enforcements list as well. I may have disagreed with people but never threatened death to anyone. Its called being sane Jethro.

        • I’ve never threatened you with death, liar nazi boi. I’ve told you what the end results of your insanity will be. You have control over how that works out.

          In the end if you’re standing against the wall waiting for the ‘Fire’ command it will not be my doing. It will be yours, SS Schutze dacian.

          every time you’re about to climb into your black uniform tell yourself, ‘remember Nuremberg’.

        • Mein Kampf was required reading in one of my collage history classes. You sound an awful lot like the nut job who wrote it in your posts.

        • Just remember JWM I keep a black book with the peoples names who have threatened me and you are at the top of the list. It will be turned over to law enforcement if something mysterious happens to me. Remember that in a court of law your internet record can be and will be reviewed.

        • Dacian, can I be added to your book? Not the first time I’ve been on a list for “special treatment” or investigation for someone’s untimely demise.

        • Something will happen to you SS Schutze dacian. It’s impossible for it not to. You’re literally too stupid to live.

          But it won’t be at my hand. Unless you come looking for me.

        • to Burning Cross
          quote————–Dacian, can I be added to your book? Not the first time I’ve been on a list for “special treatment” or investigation for someone’s untimely demise.———–quote

          Well I have seen a lot of nut cases on this forum but this is truly a first. It is the first time someone insinuated that he was a murder and has been getting away with it. Obviously the Australian Police should get some more training from the Germans or French. Then they could determine if you are just a deranged braggart or the real thing.

        • Dacian, you don’t know when your chain is being yanked. I was on a manager’s special treatment list because when she calculated staff’s profitability, she ignored the company’s primary revenue stream. It resulted in a lot of unpleasantness, including assaults condoned by her directed by her staff. Lots of “it is a misunderstanding” from her and her staff when my manager, HR, and the CEO got involved.

          And there a person in another club who was a bit of a nutter and conspiracy theorist, but not enough to qualify as mentally ill. He was known to hit the bottle and when angered would threaten to add people to his list. He had a list of people to be investigated by the police in case he died suspiciously. It was considered a badge of honor to be on his list. He died about 15-20 years ago, allegedly in his sleep. No one I know on the list was ever investigated.

          So, anus rodentum non gratin.

        • to Burning Cross

          quote————–He had a list of people to be investigated by the police in case he died suspiciously.———-quote

          Your first post was obviously a Freudian slip. Your second mistake was trying to cover up for it. Again only better police work would determine if you were bragging/intimidating or something far worse. I am glad I do not live in your town.

        • That lobotomy just didn’t take did it. Never mind you cn always apply for SecDef under Biden if you are black.

        • You Bolshevik ANTIFA are just so serious. You wouldn’t know humor if it bit you on the behind. No doubt a thorough enhanced interrogation would give you the truth you want to hear.

          I only ever saw the person at some ranges. I didn’t know where he lived. He added me to his list over some difference of opinion or an offhand comment. I just shrugged it off and said so what. Friends of mine who knew him more said they were also on his list and it was considered a badge of honor to be on the list. Most of my club was on the list. When he passed away, mutual friends told me he lived a few suburbs from where I lived at the time. Since he was a bit of an alcoholic, I think complications from the drink are the most likely cause.

          Have you applied to the ANTIFA central committee to grant you extra-territorial powers on the basis enemies of the revolution are everywhere?

          Feel free to add me to your list. Is it an investigation list or a torture and execution list? I think the local Greens Party already has me on theirs, along with all other licensed gun owners.

          And you will find your ANTIFA cohorts downunder to be a bit disappointing. They tried to “protest” a gun show and ended up being outnumbered by the police presence. And more than a thousand fold by those attending the show.

    • Well bless you jaybird, I’m glad to hear that you’ve had an impulse of charity during your life, that is commendable.

      And as I said below, I’m glad to hear you’re opposed to the death penalty.

  2. Another Problem thats the state of south carolina violate your private property rights and make an basic ban over your property !!

    https://www.handgunlaw.us/states/southcarolina.pdf

    Places Off-Limits Even With a Permit/License

    8) church or other established religious sanctuary unless express permission is given by the appropriate church official or governing body

    • “unless express permission is given by the appropriate church official“

      So you don’t think the senior pastor or the church trustees should have any say on who carries a gun into the house of the Lord?

      I’d love to hear some reaction on this, it’s always interesting when a constitutional absolutist has his absolute rights bump directly into someone else’s absolute rights.

      • No because anyone meaning to do harm will not ask permission. Sure you think no guns signs actually work.

  3. Hate crimes are stupid made up shit.
    This piece of subhuman trash can have his death sentence for murder times nine, but not for a hate crime.

  4. His head was filled with the residue left from the kind of demoCrap that gave America the Gun Control military wing of the democRat Party known as the KKK. His ignorance and hate came from exactly that crap. He damned sure did not think it up himself or get it from watching Saturday morning cartoons.

    All of those on this forum who trip over each other to wager on whether or not the perp in headline news is Black or not perpetuate such ignorance. If you had any Content of Character you would not be stupid enough to play dat sht for the next easily influenced sponge head man-child dylan roof.

    • Sorry but he was an admitted racist and said so. He murdered those people only because they were black and he said that. His room was filled with Confederate racist flags and other paraphernalia including Nazi paraphernalia. He stated that the white race was endangered with extinction because of the people he considered to be “the other”.

      • And you’re too stupid to realize that she was agreeing with you. Jeezus, you’re the perfect storm trooper, SS Schutze dacian.

        • Like a true believer, he only believes what his superiors tell him to believe.

          He would be an adequate lackey and executioner for David Chipman.

        • He is just a snapping coyote caught in a trap.
          Dont matter if you try and help , you’ll get bit.
          Speaking of that, a coyote will chew off its hind leg to get loose but not its front leg.

    • But set the chair to slow roast instead of flash fry. Breaking on the wheel might be a better option.

      • That’s cruel, I’m not much into torture.
        However if the death was televised I’m sure it would make an impact on future miscreants.
        Frying somebody slow when no one else is around but you to hear them screaming is a little twisted.

        • Generally I would prefer an execution to be quick and painless. Dylan Roof is one of the exceptions.

        • I don’t recall the Saudis televising executions, but they were public, I guess if anybody wanted to record them that was OK.

        • If you want to treat criminals with kindness so they see the error of their ways and appeal to their better natures, go right ahead. But you will be in for a ride shock when it doesn’t work.

          Newsflash, they are not like you!

  5. Judging just by that photo. If you knew nothing about him or the story surrounding him.

    Just look into those vacant, incel eyes. Is he not the perfect recruit for antifa/SS?

    • Looks like a Biden press conference. Joe Obiden killed more US troops TODAY than were killed there in all of 2020. The demtard Userper in Chief and his minions of moronic marxists.

    • “Just look into those vacant, incel eyes. Is he not the perfect recruit for antifa/SS?”

      Just what my troll likely looks like in person.

      A loser at everything, including life.

      Dance, troll. I order you to respond… 😉

    • Jaybird, I too am opposed to the death penalty because the state gets it wrong too often.

      And I understand the impulse to terminate with extreme prejudice this young man for his terrible crimes.

      But I have to say, when I look at Dylann Roof closely, I think I see physical traits consistent with Downs syndrome.

      I say life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

      • I hate to agree with you, miner, but I do this time. The state isn’t competent enough to decide life and death.

        But if ever there was an exception….

        • Good God JWM you finally said something civilized and I agree with you (something that would be an impossibility with you if the scenario were reversed)

        • We’ll find out nazi boi, if the situation ever comes up. So far you haven’t said anything civilized or even civil.

        • Lol the jury of their fellow citizens decided they are no longer fit for society. The Government just happens to be the one delivering the sentence. Watching two morons argue and then pat each other on the back is amusing though.

        • quote————We’ll find out nazi boi, if the situation ever comes up. So far you haven’t said anything civilized or even civi””””””’quote

          Your hatreds blind you reread my post that just praised you.

      • I could live with changing the criteria from “beyond a reasonable doubt” to “beyond any doubt” for capital offenses/death penalty. I’d guess that would eliminate 90% of death penalty.

  6. Roof is a doper retard piece of shit.

    And no way in hell he planned that alone. Simply no way he has enough intelligence to even know of a church with so much history as the one he targeted.
    I hope they put him in a cell with Studs McDick until the fry him.

  7. Lets see a photo of this little twerp standing at the gallows with a rope around his neck. Be interesting what smart ass look he would have on his face.

  8. Nope, I’m tall, good-looking, and unlike you, get regular female ‘attention’ that I don’t have to pay for.

    Too bad you can’t say the same, little boy. A *very* little boy… 😉

  9. He’s not going to be executed. At the very least, not in my lifetime. Part of me is pissed off and part of me is OK with that. Allow me to explain. This uniquely evil piece of work is the poster child for the death penalty, along with Nidal Hassan, Hakeem Akbar, and the Tsarnaev mutt. I’d pull the switch on any or all of them and sleep like a baby. The problem is, you only get to have one criminal justice system, and the system that puts these monsters on the slab is the same one that put 185 people on death row since 1973 that were later exonerated. That, to me, is unacceptable.

    • “the same one that put 185 people on death row since 1973 that were later exonerated. That, to me, is unacceptable”

      Bravo, my good man!

    • Honestly if I were to have to spend the rest of my life locked up I’d just as soon be dead.
      And I’ve been locked up.
      Strangely of all the things I missed most was hearng the wind blowing through the trees.
      Zoos are okay but the critters in them would rather be someplace else.
      Humans are different.

  10. Take him out to cougar country, hang him from a tree upside down, blade his forehead, and leave him to his fate.

    Cruel, unusual, and deserved.

    • the 8th amendment
      Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
      his punishment should be swift!!

  11. Roof demonstrated that he does not qualify to live among civilized people. Time to get rid of him for good. Execute him or imprison him for the rest of his life.

    • I prefer a Frank Castle method. Taken deep into the woods and gut shot. Not immediately fatal but may be so after a few days. Especially when higher predators smell the blood.

  12. I totally support the Death Penalty. Anyone who disagrees can do as I have done in the past. And call for the police to be disarmed. Because the cops kill far more people. The innocent and the guilty, more than the electric chair, gas chamber, or lethal injection combined.

    • The police should be disarmed and at a minimum qualified immunity dropped. You almost sound intelligent and no mention of sex toys or gays. Doubt it will last though.

      • You are part of the problem.
        Talking about removing qualified immunity for police officers is just a distraction. And the people who keep talking about it know that it’s a distraction. Because they don’t want the public to start demanding an end to ALL TYPES of immunity for government officials.

        The George Soros-funded district attorneys do not want the general public to learn about “absolute immunity”. Which applies to the “protected” misconduct of prosecutors and judges.

        1.
        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosecutorial_immunity

        2. The difference beteween cops protection and a DA or Judges protection.
        https://nationalpolicesupportfund.com/qualified-immunity-vs-absolute-immunity-whats-the-difference/

        3.
        “Cousin v. Small, 325 F.3d 627 (5th Cir. 2003): in this murder case, the prosecutor intentionally suppressed evidence that the key eyewitness initially told police she couldn’t see anything and wasn’t wearing her contact lenses the night of the murder and so could only make out patterns and shapes, not faces”

        “Dory v. Ryan, 25 F.3d 81 (2d Cir. 1994): in this case, the prosecutor intentionally conspired with a police officer to coerce a key witness to testify falsely against the defendant. According to the coerced witness, IT WAS THE PROSECUTOR —NOT THE police officer—who pressured him. But because the prosecutor was protected by absolute immunity, the court dismissed all claims against him, while the lawsuit could proceed against the police officer (who was entitled only to qualified immunity)”

        https://www.nlg-npap.org/absolute-immunity/

      • You TheBSonTTAG are socialist progressive in your political orientation. So I will always disappoint you.

  13. He has admitted he planned and did the murders. He said why he did it. The survivors and the families if the dead have an understanding if the why’s this individual committed his acts. Often the murderer does not survive and the reasons are not known for sure.

    Firing squad or hanging are acceptable punishments and should be carried out quickly. The evidence is clear, the jury had the defendants own words to show there was no shadow of doubt he in fact committed the crime. He had a fair trial. He was afforded the rights guaranteed by our Constitution.

    IMHO what he did was cold and calculated. His death should be quick and he should be made to feel guttural fear before he is executed.

  14. The only problems I see are 1) He’s not Dead yet. 2) It will take another 15+ years to finally Kill him if they ever do.

  15. My gawd. I was about to make a comment along the lines of several others here reference hate crimes and federal vs state crimes. But yeesh. Where do you find these pseudointellectual trolls? I think any normal thinking person believes this toad should hang. There is absolutely no excuse, rationalization or redemption for what he did.
    But then all these narcissistic sociopath types start writing in just attacking in general with no real regard for what they are criticizing or why. Look up the psychology of a troll and you’ll see them. I’m glad I have a fulfilling life. I guess not everyone does.

      • It appears dacian has runoff to tell the principal about us guys smoking cigarettes during recess, I’ll bet he’s got photos to back up his ” black book” . By the by, do you know the only thing missing in Dylans photo above? … a “what, me worry ? ” caption below it. Dylan and dacian – two twin warts on the ass of society

  16. Murder is a crime of Hate, period. Why does there need to be a separate designation just because the murderer and victim(s) are differing ethnicities? The fact that someone premeditated and callously took a life/lives demonstrates that Hate is always a factor even if this had been a white on white crime.

    I dislike the Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity defense and judgement. It’s paradoxical and Illogical. Presence or absence of sanity isn’t a defense, it’s a circumstance, either temporary or permanent. It should be a Guilty, But Insane defense or Judgement, which means that if it applies, the Death Penalty isn’t an option, the perp will spend the rest of their life behind bars or a Forensic Psychiatric Ward.
    Roof, talks and acts like a Nut case, and from all accounts, he talked and acted this way, long before his crime. The real question is, does he understand the ramifications of his actions? If yes, strap him to Old Sparky and get it over with. If no, then lock his crazy *ss up till he departs this plane naturally.

  17. I do not care what the lawyers are saying, I do not care if he was demented, mentally deficient, high on drugs, drunk, or any other excuse for what this individual did and I applaud the finding of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. He should go directly to the execution chamber for the carrying out of his conviction.

  18. I do not doubt that his representing himself weakened his defense. Also, I just do not care. We walked into a place where the people made him welcome. He spent time with them, being treated with kindness and hospitality. And then he brutally murdered all he could just because of his twisted ideology.

    No sympathy for the man. My only regret in his case is that no punishment is adequate to fit his crimes.

    So we will just have to accept the most severe punishment we can get.

  19. Calling this a hate crime is nothing but enhancement of the charges of first degree murder. To intentionally go out and kill someone because of race, ideology, sexual preferences, socio-economic class, politics, or any number of other reasons, shows you evidently hate your intended victims. As would any form of intentional murder.
    My personal take is if you commit intentional, premeditated murder, and you are convicted in open court of such charges, you get 1 appeal, with a second judge doing an independent review of proceedings and evidence, checking to see that the I’s were dotted etc. and then the sentence is carried out. With the availability of DNA, video evidence, as well as forensics, the chances of convicting the wrong person is much less than in previous generations. As are the chances of someone getting away with a crime.
    Dually convicted, appeal done, procedures verified, execution done. None of this crap of criminals dying of old age on death row.

  20. His valuable organs should not be wasted. He should be transported to a famous transplant hospital where his organs are carefully removed and given to patients who are waiting for those life-saving organs.

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