Great news! Dylann Roof expected to be indicted for federal hate crimes this afternoon

[malaise]

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jul/22/dylann-roof-charleston-shooting-hate-crimes-charges
<snip>
The 21-year-old man suspected of killing nine black churchgoers in Charleston, South Carolina, is expected to face federal hate crimes charges, according to media reports.

Anonymous federal law enforcement sources have confirmed to both the Associated Press and the Charleston Post and Courier that Dylann Roof will be indicted on federal hate crimes charges as soon as Wednesday afternoon, a move expected since his arrest in June. The charges are in addition to murder and weapons charges he already faces at the county level.

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robmhill
27m ago
0 1

We are crawling up the friends and family of the Tennessee shooter, because we can under the guise of terrorism. Good way to find out what happened.
We are not doing that with Roof because we do not want to know the truth about his family, friends and church. The White Churches down there preach hate, I have heard this from people who left churches in SC to get away from it.

No one wanted to look under the rug of the "new south." Too bad, it all makes sense when you see what's there.

Charging a hate crime was a chicken-shit political move to avoid embarrassing the white south with having to face the truth. The casual hatred Roof learned growing up meant he did not need the internet to be "radicalised." His friends and family did it for him. And they did not get him treatment for his neurological deficits. Not that SC knows from psychology.

[udbcrzy2]

1. I wonder if he will try the insanity defense?

If he has deficits, he may try the insanity defense, but I don't think it will work because he planned and then fled. He knew he did something wrong. Either way State or Federal, he is toast.

[malaise]

3. Well the fact that he said he almost didn't kill them because

they were so nice to him will make any insanity plea fall on deaf ears.

[udbcrzy2]

4. I know it sounds like bs to me for sure n/t

[1939]

6. If you were the defense lawyer, how would you do it?

While sane enough for a finding of guilty, the mental problems might very well apply in the penalty phase. It is the only card the defense has to play.

[malaise]

7. I'd never be a defense lawyer

and I have no interest in Roof's side of this trial.
For the record my parents took me to England hoping I'd attend the same law school as my dad and I had a good laugh and said NO - I prefer justice to law. Nothing has changed in these 40 plus years.

[1939]

8. Many, many years ago when I was a young lieutenant

I was detailed several times as defense counsel for courts-martial. Each time, the guy was obviously guilty, but you made the trial counsel have to prove it. If he couldn't establish the "elements of proof" in the case, you could get the guilty guy off. If you saw it was pretty open and shut, you had him plead guilty and try to go for "extenuation and mitigation" in the penalty phase.

I have voted against a finding of guilty when I was a member of the court even when everyone in the room knew the guy was guilty if the trial counsel couldn't prove the case. Did the guilty guy get "justice", no but he got a fair trial.

[malaise]

9. There will be no fair trial if this racist white supremacist terrorist

is found not guilty

[COLGATE4]

11. That's what it's all about - making the Prosecution

prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt, i.e. getting the Defense a fair trial.

[Gothmog]

2. This is great news

[MoonRiver]

5. YAY!

[malaise]

12. Yes - here's the AG

http://edition.cnn.com/2015/07/22/us/charleston-shooting-hate-crime-charges/

[MoonRiver]

13. I really like her!

I think she will be tougher than Holder in these hate cases. Of course she has a lot of ammo against Roof. He practically handed her his indictment.

[B2G]

10. Not surprised and appropropriate. nt