The U.S. Justice Department announced Wednesday that a federal grand jury returned a 33-count indictment against Dylann Roof that included hate crime charges for his massacre of nine black churchgoers last month in Charleston, South Carolina.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch said in announcing the charges that Roof, a 21-year-old white man, targeted Charleston’s historically black Emanuel AME Church “to ensure the greatest notoriety and attention to his actions.”
Asked whether the Justice Department considered prosecuting Roof for domestic terrorism, Lynch responded that there are no applicable laws. She later added that Roof’s crime should not be considered any less serious because it hasn’t been officially labelled as domestic terrorism.
“Racially motivated violence such as this is the original domestic terrorism,” she said.
South Carolina is one of just five states that does not have a hate-crime law on the books. Roof already faces nine counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder for the victims who survived the shooting at Charleston’s Emanuel AME Church.
Lynch said the Justice Department had yet to decide whether to pursue the death penalty in Roof’s case.
Read the indictment below:
This post has been updated.
To a great extent, we are our actions, and that’s something this loser is going to have to deal with for the rest of his days. Of course if he’s a sociopath, his actions won’t haunt him, only the consequences.
Wow, there’s a shocker. Good thing about this hate crime thing is that if local prosecution makes a technical error and he “skates”, he still faces federal charges. Always good to have a back-up since you can’t be tried twice for murder.
That flag might make nice decor for his cell… The scrawny little punk is going to see some rough time…love it.
He needs to be put down like the dog he is, ASAP. Which is an insult to dogs, as they are useful and full of love
He’s eligible for the death penalty because of the federal charges, but that will be a prolonged process with many appeals (like the Boston marathon bomber), and I’m not saying I’m pro death penalty because I’m not. I think of the families and their forgiveness and just want this hateful kid done with and out of their lives and memories…
Yes, true, and South Carolina also has the death penalty. I’d prefer a lifetime of ass kickings in prison for him though.