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SENTENCEDTO DEATH
Tsarnaev gets ultimate penalty for placing Marathon bomb
By Milton J. ValenciaGLOBE STAFF
The federal jury that watchedDzhokhar Tsarnaev sit impassively incourt for the past three months delivered the severest form of justice Friday, sentencing the homegrown terrorist to death for detonating a bombamid Boston Marathon spectatorsthat left wounds — emotional andphysical — that will persist across lifetimes.
Tsarnaev again stood stonefacedas the verdict was read by a courtclerk and some sternfaced jurorsdabbed their eyes. He becomes thefirst terrorist condemned to death bya jury in the United States in thepost9/11 world.
The unanimous verdict brought toa close a legal drama that has unfolded on the South Boston waterfrontsince January, with searing testimonyabout the bombings that killed three,took the limbs of 17 others, and injured hundreds more. Throughoutthe proceedings, the lanky 21yearold showed no remorse.
The death sentence automaticallysets in motion an appeals process thatcould last more than a decade.
“Our thoughts should now turnaway from the Tsarnaev brothers forgood,” US Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz
TSARNAEV, Page A6
Moments after thejury’s sentence wasannounced, as it became clear thatDzhokhar Tsarnaev
was bound for federal death row inTerre Haute, Ind., I turned to my left.
In the second row on the far sideof Courtroom 9, Bill and DeniseRichard leaned forward, dryeyed.Two rows in back of them, Liz Norden wiped tears from her eyes.
The Richards opposed the deathpenalty for the man who murderedtheir 8yearold son, saying it wouldlead to an endless cycle of appeals,keeping Tsarnaev in our collectiveconsciousness forever. Liz Norden,whose sons JP and Paul lost theirlegs on Boylston Street, believedTsarnaev deserved to die for what hedid.
Their reactions might not havebeen expected by most, but trying topredict reactions in the abstract ismeaningless. So, too, was the widespread belief that a jury in Massachusetts would never sentence anyone to death, even someone as crueland remorseless as Dzhokhar Tsar
CULLEN, Page A8
Shows noemotion;appeals maylast decade
WHEN IS THE FORMALSENTENCING?US District Judge George A.O’Toole Jr. must officially imposethe death penalty, and he will dothat in a sentencing hearing at alater date. The jury’s decision is legally binding. At the hearing,Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s victims willhave an opportunity to confronthim. Tsarnaev, if he chooses, couldaddress the court.
WHERE WILL TSARNAEVEVENTUALLY GO?Because he was sentenced to death,he will probably be taken to thefederal prison at Terre Haute, Ind.,where the Bureau of Prisons holdsinmates on death row.
WILL HE APPEAL?Tsarnaev will probably engage in alengthy appeals process that couldtake more than a decade. He willprobably focus on several of thejudge’s decisions, including the refusal to relocate the trial.
More on what's next, A7.
What willhappen next
After whatjurors saw,no simple
choice
Kevin CullenCOMMENTARY
JANE FLAVELL COLLINS
Use of a weapon of mass destruction (pressure cooker bomb #2) in the vicinity of 755Boylston St., and aiding and abetting, resulting in the deaths of Lingzi Lu and MartinRichard.
Possession or use of a firearm (pressurecooker bomb #2) during and in relation to acrime of violence, namely, use of a weaponof mass destruction, and aiding and abetting,resulting in the deaths of Lu and Richard.
Bombing of a place of public use (pressurecooker bomb #2) in the vicinity of 755 Boylston St., and aiding and abetting, resulting inthe deaths of Lu and Richard.
Possession or use of a firearm (pressurecooker bomb #2) during and in relation to acrime of violence, namely, the bombing of aplace of public use, and aiding and abetting,resulting in the deaths of Lu and Richard.
Malicious destruction of property by meansof an explosive (pressure cooker bomb #2),and aiding and abetting, resulting in thedeaths of Lu and Richard.
Possession or use of a firearm (pressurecooker bomb #2) during and in relation to acrime of violence, and aiding and abetting,resulting in the deaths of Lu and Richard.
DEATH PENALTY FOR 6 OF THE 17 COUNTS
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By Patricia WenGLOBE STAFF
The 24page verdict form completed by jurors Friday in thedeathpenalty trial of Boston Mara
t h o n b o m b e rDzhokhar Tsarnaev sent one clearmessage: The de
fense team’s narrative about whythis lanky, expressionless defendant deserved a measure of sympa
thy did not ring true.During deliberations over 14½
hours, the jury rejected each of fourkey aspects of the defense case. Thepanel did not agree that Tsarnaevcame under the domination of anolder brother, that he was largelyneglected by troubled parents, andthat the toughest highsecurityprison in America would preventhim from achieving future fame.
And in what may have been piv
otal in the jury’s decision, the panelalso rejected the defense contention that the 21yearold Cambridge high school graduate was remorseful. Tsarnaev showed littleemotion throughout the trial, evenwhen some victims with prostheticlegs testified about multiple surgeries they have endured, or BB’s stilllodged in their bodies.
“His lack of remorse sealed hisfate,” said George Vien, a former
veteran federal prosecutor in Boston with deathpenalty expertise.
No jurors were available forcomment in the courthouse afterthe verdict was read, and theiridentities have so far been keptconfidential by the court.
But the jury’s reasoning can bepotentially gleaned from the verdict form, which shows how members voted on dozens of “aggravat
ANALYSIS, Page A8
Defense unable to generate sympathy for a terrorist
By David Abeland John R. Ellement
GLOBE STAFF
There was deep relief, and therewas angst.
A federal jury’s dramatic decisionFriday to sentence Boston Marathonbomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to deathsparked mixed feelings among thesurvivors, emergency personnel, andothers who experienced the horrorunleashed when two homemadepressurecooker bombs detonatednear the finish line of the worldrenowned race on April 15, 2013.
Sydney Corcoran was seriouslyinjured in the blasts, along with hermother, Celeste, who lost both legs.After the verdict, Sydney turned tosocial media.
“My mother and I think thatNOW he will go away and we will beable to move on. Justice,’’ SydneyCorcoran wrote on her Twitter account. “In his own words, ‘an eye foran eye.’ ”
Heather Abbott, who lost her leftleg below the knee after the secondbomb exploded on Boylston Street,
FAMILIES, Page A7
Sense of relief for some survivors, but little peace
JOHN TLUMACKI/GLOBE STAFF
Kevin Corcoran, his daughter Sydney (left), seriously injured in the attack, and hiswife, Celeste, who lost both legs, embraced after the verdict. The four killed by theTsarnaevs (from top): Lingzi Lu, Martin Richard, Krystle Campbell, and Sean Collier.
NEWSANALYSIS
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