Marathon bombing victims react to Tsarnaev’s death sentence
By Samantha Lavien
Convicted bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has been sentenced to death by a jury of 7 women and 5 men.
After the verdict victims and their families reacted to the sentence.
“He wanted to go to hell and he’s going to get there early, said Michael Ward a firefighter who was off duty when twin bombs exploded at the finish line of the marathon in 2013.
Ward helped victims following the attacks. “I remember when those bombs went off… I remember the vile disgusting thing that this person did and his brother. They destroyed countless innocent lives, destroyed bodies and parts—very vivid memories for many people and many families. This is nothing to celebrate, this is a matter of justice.”
The bombings and attacks killed four, left 17 as amputees, and maimed hundreds more. Tsarnaev was sentenced to death on six of the 17 eligible counts.
Carlos Arrendondo, considered a Marathon bombing hero, explains, “It’s just a lot of feelings through all this. It’s just really hard to digest everything”
The verdict is one some survivors were hoping for.
Survivor Karen Brassard described, “It’s bittersweet; there’s no winner today but I feel justice for my family.”
But, others were not as pleased, dreading the long process of appeals ahead.
“For me personally it’s something I was hoping to avoid. Having personally endured several things in my own life that will drag on, this seems like another burden that will drag on,” explained Melida Arredondo, Carlos’ wife.
After the decision, there was a palpable sense of relief among most of the victims, many of whom have relived the horrible memories of what happened through the 10 gruesome weeks it took to try this case.
Liz Norden, whose sons both lost a leg in the bombings, said, “Right now it feels like we can take a breath and kind of actually breathe again. You know, without even realizing it you’re holding your breath and once the verdict came in, it was like, ok, now we can start from here.”
The judge will issue a formal sentence to Tsarnaev at a later date. At that point, victims will be able to directly address the convicted bomber.
© WLNE-TV 2015
