Charleston church shooter to plead guilty to state murder charges
It is the first time in U.S. history that a state government and the federal government have pursued the death penalty for the same defendant. (Sign up for our free video newsletter here http://bit.ly/2n6VKPR)
Convicted South Carolina church shooter Dylann Roof is set to plead guilty to state murder charges to avoid a second death sentence.
Solicitor Scarlett Wilson told the Associated Press on Friday that Roof is scheduled to enter a guilty plea during a hearing April 10 in Charleston. She said he will enter the plea in exchange for a sentence of life in prison.
Roof has been awaiting trial on state murder charges for the deaths of nine black parishioners at Charleston’s Emanuel AME Church in June 2015.
The deal won’t save Roof from a possible execution. Earlier this year, a federal jury sentenced him to death on charges including hate crimes.
Wilson had also sought the death penalty in state court. She says the deal allows Roof, who’s been in the Charleston County jail awaiting his state trial, to be transferred to federal custody.
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