THE TRIAL OF DYLANN ROOF

[HairOfTheDog]

Along with the overt racism, Roof’s confession and notes show the then-21-year-old as naive and immature. He wrote a note apologizing to his mother and saying “as childish as it sounds, I wish I was in your arms.” At one point, an agent asked if Roof had thought about killing more blacks. “Oh, no. I was worn out,” Roof said.

Justin Britt, a Richland County sheriff’s deputy, testified that Roof’s mother collapsed when authorities came to her home the day after the shootings and started asking questions about her son. After recovering, Britt said Roof’s mother led him to her son’s bedroom, where she showed him a digital camera on which Britt said he saw pictures of Roof with a Confederate flag. “She said, ‘There’s something that I think you need to see,’” Britt testified.

Another officer who helped search the home testified she recovered dozens of spent ammunition rounds, saying relatives told her Roof and others would practice shooting in a nearby wooded area. Kristen Polis also testified she photographed a white pillowcase cut into a triangle because “to me, it represents what could be a Ku Klux Klan hood.”

Witness testimony is expected to wrap up Wednesday, with the government calling a medical examiner to discuss details of the victims’ injuries. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Richardson opened his case with Felicia Sanders, a survivor of the June 2015 shooting at Charleston’s Emanuel AME Church. He has said he plans to close with testimony of another survivor, Polly Sheppard.

Defense attorney David Bruck, who has previously said he might not call any witnesses, said Tuesday he would likely call some after all.

If Roof is convicted, jurors would decide if he should be sentenced to life in prison or the death penalty. While he has a defense team at the moment, Roof has said he wants to be his own lawyer for the penalty phase.

Roof’s lawyers have conceded that he carried out the attack, and are focused on persuading jurors to spare his life in the penalty phase of the trial.

Ref: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/dylann-roof-...e-actions/