Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting : Robert Bowers, the gunman who killed 11 worshippers and wounded six others at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018, was sentenced to death by a federal jury on Wednesday.
The jury unanimously found that all five of the prosecution’s aggravating factors were proven, including that the crime was committed against a vulnerable victim population, that it was motivated by religious bias, and that it was committed in an especially cruel and depraved manner.
The defense put forth 115 mitigating factors, but the jury rejected most of them. The only mitigating factor that the jury found to be true was that Bowers had a difficult childhood.
Bowers’ formal sentencing is set to take place on Thursday.
The victims’ families thanked the jury and prosecution for their work on the case.
“Although we will never attain closure from the loss of our beloved Rose Mallinger, we now feel a measure of justice has been served,” the family of Mallinger said in a statement.
Rabbi Jeffrey Myers of the Tree of Life congregation, who survived the attack, said the jury decision represents the end of one chapter and the start of another.
“As we do, I have my faith, bolstered by the embrace and respect with which my community has been treated by our government and our fellow citizens,” he said in a statement.
The leaders of the New Light Congregation acknowledged that many of their members preferred the gunman spend the rest of his life in prison rather than receive the death penalty. However, they agreed with the government’s decision.
“Life in prison without parole would allow the shooter to celebrate his deed for many years,” they wrote. “New Light Congregation accepts the jury’s decision and believes that, as a society, we need to take a stand that this act requires the ultimate penalty under the law.”
The trial featured testimony from the people who escaped the mayhem and harrowing audio of a 911 call from one of the victims.
Those who survived the shooting testified about hiding in closets and listening to the final words of their friends and loved ones. Law enforcement officers also testified that they were fired upon when responding to the attack before Bowers ultimately ran out of ammo and surrendered.
The prosecution even entered into evidence a prayer book with a bullet hole, a symbol of the day’s destruction.
“It’s a witness to the horror of the day,” Myers testified. “One day when I’m not there, this book tells a story that needs to be told.”
Bowers’ sentencing is the first federal death penalty imposed under the Biden administration, which has put a moratorium on executions.
Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting
Refer website : cnn
