A South Carolina prosecutor will pursue capital punishment in the case of accused murderer Dylann Roof, WCSC reports.
The state’s 9th Judicial Circuit solicitor, Scarlett Wilson, said on Thursday that the state will seek the death penalty against Roof, who is accused of murdering nine worshippers, including a state senator, in the tragic June massacre at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. “The murders at the Mother Emanuel Church were heinous acts that changed the future of 10 families forever,” the prosecutor said at a press conference.
The news station notes that Roof had reportedly been prepared to plead guilty, according to comments by defense attorney David Bruck during an arraignment hearing in July, but Roof’s defense team decided to wait to see if prosecutors pursued the death penalty.
As the New York Times reports, Roof has been indicted twice for the deaths, in state court and in federal court. In both cases, Roof could face the death penalty, but it is not clear if federal prosecutors intend to pursue capital punishment, too.
Read more at WCSC and the New York Times.