The Associated Press has a Time article about justice, finally, for the Boston Marathon victims:
A jury sentenced Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to death for the Boston Marathon bombing, sweeping aside pleas that he was just a “kid” who fell under the influence of his fanatical older brother.
Tsarnaev, 21, stood with his hands folded, his head slightly bowed, upon learning his fate, sealed after fourteen hours of deliberations over three days. It was the most closely watched terrorism trial in the US since the Oklahoma City bombing case two decades ago.
The decision sets the stage for what could be the nation’s first execution of a terrorist in the post-9/11 era, though the case is likely to go through years of appeals. The execution would be carried out by lethal injection.
“Now he will go away and we will be able to move on. Justice. In his own words, ‘an eye for an eye,'” said bombing victim Sydney Corcoran, who nearly bled to death and whose mother lost both legs.
Michael Ward, a firefighter who came to the rescue of the attack’s victims, said: “He wanted to go to hell, and he will get there early.”
Three people were killed and nearly three hundred wounded when Tsarnaev and his brother set off two shrapnel-packed pressure-cooker bombs near the finish line of the race on 15 April 2013. The Tsarnaevs also shot an MIT police officer to death during their getaway.
The twelve-member federal jury had to be unanimous for Tsarnaev to get the death penalty, otherwise the former college student would have automatically received a sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole.
In weighing the arguments for and against death, the jurors decided, among other things, that Tsarnaev showed a lack of remorse. And they emphatically rejected the defense’s central argument, that he was led down the path to terrorism by his big brother.
“Today the jury has spoken. Dzhokhar Tsrnaev will pay for his crimes with his life,” said US attorney Carmen Ortiz.
Tsarnaev’s father, Anzor Tsarnaev, reached by phone by The Associated Press in the Russian region of Dagestan, let out a deep moan upon hearing the news and hung up. Tsarnaev’s lawyers had no comment as they left the courtroom.
The attack and the ensuing manhunt paralyzed the city for days and cast a pall over the Marathon, normally one of Boston’s proudest, most exciting moments, that has yet to be lifted.
With the decision, community leaders and others talked of closure, of resilience, of the city’s Boston Strong spirit. “Today, more than ever, we know that Boston is a city of hope, strength, and resilience that can overcome any challenge,” said Mayor Marty Walsh.
Tsarnaev was convicted last month of all thirty charges against him, including use of a weapon of mass destruction. Seventeen of those charges carried the possibility of a death sentence.
Tsarnaev’s chief lawyer, death penalty specialist Judy Clarke, admitted at the very start of the trial that he participated in the bombings, bluntly telling the jury: “It was him.”
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