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Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Speaks at Sentencing

Dzhohkar Tsarnaev has been sentenced to death for the Boston Marathon bombings. From live tweets of reporters Jim Armstrong and Patricia Wen in the courtroom.

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev spoke for about 4 minutes. He expressed remorse. "I would like to now apologize to the victims and to the survivors." ..."I am sorry for the lives I have taken....for the suffering I have caused and the terrible damage I have done."

He left no doubt about his guilt:

"I am guilty of the bombing, let there be no lingering question about that."

He thanked his attorneys and said "I cherish their company." He said they have done a lot for his family. His defense attorney, Judy Clarke, told the Court he had tried to settle the case before trial. [More...]

Clarke notes that, before trial, he had offered to settle the case and indicated in that statement that he was remorseful.

(Translation: We offered to plead and accept a life sentence but the Government refused.) Apparently he also submitted a written statement acknowledging guilt as part of his offer to plead guilty.

The judge sentenced him to death and said he would recommend to the Bureau of Prisons that he be designated to Terre Haute. Terre Haute is the location of the feds' death row. The defense had asked for a designation to a prison in New Hampshire. The judge also imposed 19 life terms (on the non-death counts.)

I disagree with this statement from the Judge:

"Whenever your name is mentioned, what will be remembered is the evil you have done. No one will remember your teachers were fond of you."

I will remember his teachers were fond of him. I will also remember the other positive things the defense brought out about him.

I will always have a doubt about the fairness of the sentencing verdict because the trial should not have taken place in Boston.

Every individual is more than the sum of his misdeeds. He was 19 years old when the crime happened. He had no prior record. He can no longer be influenced by his deceased brother, without whom these crimes would not have happened.

Life in prison would have been sufficient punishment. Life is prison is a death sentence: the only way out is in a pine box.

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  • Display: Sort:
    The curtain falls, a veil is lifted; (5.00 / 1) (#1)
    by Mr Natural on Wed Jun 24, 2015 at 04:58:31 PM EST
    finally is a child revealed.

    I probably won't remember his name (5.00 / 1) (#3)
    by CST on Wed Jun 24, 2015 at 05:19:11 PM EST
    Doesn't hurt that his name is hard to remember.

    But I will remember the astounding response from the Boston medical community that day which prevented what could easily have been a much higher death count.  I was reminded of it again a few days ago while walking through the medical district to see my new nephew, just how lucky we were to have those incredible resources.  I truly think that if it had happened anywhere else it would have been much worse.

    If I do think of Tsarnaev - the person, I'll think of the stain on the community that was caused when we sentenced him to death.  And the pain of the victims that no amount of apologizing can remove.

    Your voice on this (5.00 / 1) (#6)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jun 24, 2015 at 05:57:09 PM EST
    was an important one.  As a local.  It echoed what I heard from other people I know there

    Killing him won't bring anyone back.  It won't stop the next one.   At this point it's about us as much as him.

    Parent

    He's (none / 0) (#2)
    by lentinel on Wed Jun 24, 2015 at 05:13:44 PM EST
    %%n