Racist church shooter Dylann Roof says it’s ‘not fair’ his victims’ families get to talk so much
Charleston church gunman Dylann Roof wrote in a court filing unsealed Thursday that it was “not fair” for prosecutors to present such extensive testimony about the effect of his killings on victims’ family members, arguing - because he was not presenting any evidence - that it would virtually assure a death sentence.
“If I don’t present any mitigation evidence, the victim-impact evidence will take over the whole sentencing trial and guarantee that I get the death penalty,” Roof wrote.
US District Judge Richard Gergel ultimately did not impose any limits on testimony, though he warned prosecutors he was worried about the issue. “I’m concerned both about the number of witnesses and the length of their testimony and the length collectively of their testimony, and I want you to revisit your strategy here, because at some point I’m going to cut you off if it gets too long,” he said.
Assistant US Attorney Jay Richardson insisted the government was acting appropriately.
“It is also, I think, important that the government and these individuals are allowed to tell the stories of their loved ones,” he said.
“I am not sorry,” Roof wrote in the journal. “I have not shed a tear for the innocent people I killed.”
To persuade jurors to impose the ultimate punishment, prosecutors must show the aggravating factors in the case - Roof’s racial motivation, his lack of remorse and the effect his crime had on the victims and their families - outweigh the mitigating evidence. They have questioned victims’ loved ones at length, often bantering with the witnesses and drawing laughs from those in the courtroom.
Denise Quarles, victim Myra Thompson’s daughter, spoke Thursday of how her mom was her confidante and role model who told her in a regular check-in not long before the shooting: “I just want you to know, if I never told you before, that I’m proud of you.”
Rita Whidbee, a longtime friend of victim Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, told jurors how Coleman-Singleton planned her wedding based on the simple instruction, “I want to be a princess,” and perfected every detail down to the horse-drawn carriage. When it came time for the honeymoon, Whidbee said, Coleman-Singleton tagged along.
“Sharonda was everything any friend could ever want,” Whidbee said.
Roof is representing himself at the trial, having fired his attorneys before the penalty phase began. He said in an opening statement he did so because he did not want them to offer evidence that he had psychological problems, and he insisted he had none.
Prosecutors have indicated that they could call as many as 38 witnesses, though Richardson said Thursday the final figure will probably be less. Although Roof has not presented any evidence, Gergel told jurors they could consider his confession in the case, his offer to plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence and the possibility that he could change as factors in favour of a life sentence.
