SC prosecutor Wilson to seek death penalty in Charleston massacre case

A South Carolina prosecutor said Thursday she will seek the death penalty for an alleged white supremacist, Dylann Roof of Columbia, who is charged with killing nine black churchgoers in June in Charleston.

“This was the ultimate crime, and justice from our state calls for the ultimate penalty,” 9th Judicial Circuit Solicitor Scarlett Wilson told reporters.

Some victims’ family members wanted her to seek the death penalty, while others said their faith has led them to forgive Roof and a life sentence would suffice, Wilson said.

“We all agree that forgiveness can be an important part of the healing process, but know that forgiveness does not necessarily mean foregoing consequences – even severe consequences,” Wilson said.

Wilson’s decision sets up the likelihood of a lengthy, hotly contested trial in which facts of the killings and Roof’s motivations and background will be examined in detail in a public forum.

Nothing will be quick.

If Roof, 21, is convicted and given the death penalty, his appeals could drag on for years in state and federal courts.

Roof’s lead state defense attorney, 9th Circuit Public Defender Ashley Pennington, said he and co-counsel William McGuire have no comment. Both are court-appointed because Roof qualified as indigent. Both have extensive death penalty experience.

A trial date of July 11 has been set by state Circuit Judge J.C. Nicholson. Roof faces nine murder charges and three charges of attempted murder for the three parishioners who survived. Two others were in the church at the time, heard the gunshot and did not come out of their locked room.

In court filings Thursday, Wilson said the slayings during a prayer meeting at the historic “Mother” Emanuel AME Church qualify as a capital case because “two or more people” were killed and he “knowingly created a great risk of death to more than one person in a public place ...”

Wilson also stated she intends to introduce evidence detailing how Roof planned his crimes and showing that he posted statements on the Internet “showing the defendant’s utter disregard and lack of remorse for the nine people he murdered ...”

Roof’s juvenile record and his conduct and statements he has made since being jailed in Charleston will also be potential evidence, Wilson stated in her filings.

Roof’s image was caught on a surveillance camera outside the church as he left the scene June 17, and he was arrested in western North Carolina the next morning. He has been held without bond in an isolation unit at the Charleston County detention center.

Within days, postings Roof allegedly made on the Internet about how he hoped to ignite a race war were made public.

The killings shocked the nation, underscored an ongoing conversation about race relations in America and sparked the removal of the Confederate flag from South Carolina’s capitol grounds. It also brought President Obama to Charleston to deliver a eulogy for state senator Clementa Pinckney, who was among those killed in the church that he pastored.

Charleston attorney Andy Savage, who represents seven of the victims – four of the deceased and three survivors – said those families look at this case “through a prism that comes from a deep-rooted Christian sensitivity” and that they would be satisfied with a life sentence.

Wilson has met with the families on many occasions to explain why she thought because of her oath of office that she was required to seek the death penalty, Savage said.

“They are not upset with Scarlett, they are grateful that Scarlett included them in the decision process,” Savage said. “They also understand this is the first step – just because she files a notice of intent that doesn’t mean it will be carried out.”

Speaking personally, Savage said, he would have preferred that Roof just be put away for life “so he will not be on the front page tomorrow, and all the tomorrows that are to come – 20 years in your face about that guy, who no one likes to mention his name.”

The reaction from Pinckney’s family was sent to reporters by family attorney Sen. Gerald Malloy, D-Darlington: “The Pinckney family continues to focus on their healing and on the preservation of Senator Pinckney’s legacy. We are confident that prosecutors in the State and Federal jurisdictions will find justice in this case.”

In the weeks since the church killings, Wilson has said little publicly.

Meanwhile, a federal prosecution is underway.

On July 16, Roof was indicted by a federal grand jury for hate crimes in the killings.

That 33-count federal indictment charges Roof with 12 counts of committing a federal hate crime (nine counts of murder and three attempted murders) against black victims, 12 counts of obstructing the exercise of religion resulting in death and nine counts of the use of a firearm to commit murder.

Roof is eligible under federal law for the death penalty.

On July 30, in a federal court hearing in Charleston, one of Roof’s federal defense attorneys told a magistrate judge that Roof wants to plead guilty to the federal charges in the killings.

But, said Roof’s lawyer David Bruck, Roof doesn’t want to plead guilty until he knows whether the federal government will seek the death penalty.

Bill Nettles, U.S. Attorney for South Carolina who is taking part in the federal decision-making process, said Thursday the Justice Department is weighing its options.

Johnny Gasser, a Columbia defense attorney who prosecuted eight death penalty cases when he worked for the 5th Circuit Solicitor’s office and the U.S. Attorney’s office in Columbia, said Wilson “absolute made” the correct decision.

“Given the enormity of the crime and the strength of the evidence, it was the right decision,” said Gasser.

This story was originally published September 3, 2015 at 10:55 AM with the headline "SC prosecutor Wilson to seek death penalty in Charleston massacre case."