Dylann Roof expected to speak at hearing in preparation for sentencing phase of trial

The Columbia-area man who killed nine black parishioners at a Charleston church will go before a judge on Wednesday to prepare for the sentencing phase of his hate crimes trial.

Dylann Roof, 22, is expected to represent himself when the jury returns on Jan. 3 to decide if he should get the death penalty. Roof has until then to change his mind and have his highly experienced, anti-death penalty lawyer David Bruck take over.

But before then, he’ll attend a pretrial conference at 10 a.m., at the Charleston federal courthouse. Details on what the hearing will entail were not included in the Dec. 19 order by presiding U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel.

Since Roof was found guilty on Dec. 15, few motions have been filed in federal court. On Dec. 16, Roof filed a handwritten note that he would not be offering expert evidence on his mental condition during the sentencing proceedings. A few days later, Gergel filed a sealed order, and lead prosecutor Jay Richardson filed a sealed document Monday.

Shooting survivor Felicia Sanders – whose harrowing testimony brought many to tears in court – has said she will testify during the sentencing phase of the trial.

Bruck has argued thoroughout the proceedings that Roof’s mental health should be a factor, but Bruck’s efforts were continually rebuffed by Gergel and rebuked by Richardson. Roof wrote, as part of his online white supremacy manifesto, that he didn’t believe in psychology.

Roof has been warned repeatedly by Gergel that he thinks it’s a bad idea for Roof to represent himself. Roof initially announced he’d represent himself throughout both phases of the trial, but opted against that during the guilt portion of the trial, allowing Bruck to present the case.

This story was originally published December 27, 2016 at 5:41 PM with the headline "Dylann Roof expected to speak at hearing in preparation for sentencing phase of trial."