As Roof’s sentencing nears, wounds reopen

Associated Press

CHARLESTON, S.C.

In a courtroom a mile from the scene of the Charleston church slayings, wounds reopened as nearly two dozen friends and relatives of the nine victims shared memories and opined about a future without a mother, father, sister or brother.

They shed tears and their voices shook, but none of them said whether Dylann Roof should face the death penalty or life in prison for gunning down the church members during a Bible study at Emanuel AME. That will be left up to the jury, which will begin its deliberations today after hearing a closing argument from prosecutors and perhaps Roof. He has represented himself during sentencing, but has not put up any fight for his life. He didn’t call any witnesses, present any evidence and so far has not asked for mercy.

He did try to limit the amount of heart-wrenching testimony the jurors heard, but with only little success.

Survivor Jennifer Pinckney talked about the life of her husband, church pastor and state Sen. Clementa Pinckney. She spoke about the harrowing minutes she spent huddled under a desk with her youngest daughter as shots rang out in the next room, unsure if the shooter was coming her way.

Law officers took the stand, too, reading from a journal found in Roof’s cell. Six weeks after his arrest, the then-21-year-old Roof wrote that he had “not shed a tear for the innocent people I killed,” scribbling white supremacy symbols and writing his thoughts about other races’ inferiority.

The jury’s decision must be unanimous. If they are unable to agree, a life sentence is automatically imposed.