Supreme Court Reinstates Death Sentence For Boston Marathon Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
WASHINGTON (CBS/AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court has reinstated the death sentence for convicted Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
The justices, by a 6-3 vote Friday, agreed with the Biden administration's arguments that a federal appeals court was wrong to throw out the sentence of death a jury imposed on Tsarnaev for his role in the bombing, which killed three people near the finish line of the marathon in 2013.
The First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston ruled in 2020 that the trial judge improperly excluded evidence that could have shown Tsarnaev was deeply influenced by his older brother, Tamerlan, and was somehow less responsible for the carnage. The appeals court also faulted the judge for not sufficiently questioning jurors about their exposure to extensive news coverage of the bombing.
"Dzhokhar Tsarnaev committed heinous crimes," Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for the majority. "The Sixth Amendment nonetheless guaranteed him a fair trial before an impartial jury. He received one. The judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is reversed."
The court's three liberal justices represented all the votes against reinstating the death penalty. In dissent, Justice Stephen Breyer wrote, "In my view, the Court of Appeals acted lawfully in holding that the District Court should have allowed Dzhokhar to introduce this evidence."
The prospect that Tsarnaev, now 28, will be executed anytime soon is remote. The Justice Department halted federal executions last summer after the Trump administration carried out 13 executions in its final six months.
In a statement on Friday, U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins said about the court's ruling, "There remain, however, other legal issues that must be addressed by various courts. Legal rulings don't erase trauma and pain. Our focus today, and always, is on the hundreds of families that were deeply impacted and traumatized by this horrific act of domestic terrorism."
President Joe Biden has said he opposes the death penalty, but his administration was put in the position of defending Tsarnaev's sentence at the Supreme Court.
Marc Fucarile, one of the survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing, unequivocally agreed with the Supreme Court's decision.
"I think it should happen sooner than later. Get it over with. Let's go," Fucarile said, who lost a leg at the marathon finish line that day. "I think that message needs to be sent, and I think the Supreme Court sent it well. And I think the three that didn't vote for should be ashamed and should resign. 100%. Because what do you have to do in this country to get the death penalty? How many do you have to kill -- kids, cops -- how many do you have to murder before we put you to rest and don't foot your bill? It's embarrassing."
Regardless of the next steps, WBZ-TV's Chief Investigative Reporter Cheryl Fiandaca outlined what Tsarnaev's current living situation in prison looks like.
"He'll just stay in what's called Supermax, and that's where he is in Colorado. It's a very secure facility that is run by the federal government in the middle of nowhere. Everything is very automated there, which means he has very little contact with any human. The doors open automatically. All the other doors are closed. He's very limited in the activities he can participate in. Business and any kind of interaction with anybody else is very limited. So he's basically in a very isolated situation and has been for many years.
(© Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press's Mark Sherman contributed to this report.)