Deliberations begin in penalty phase of Tsarnaev trial
By Samantha Lavien
The jury in the Boston Marathon bombing trial began deliberating the fate of convicted bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev late Wednesday afternoon.
They are charged with deciding whether he will live or die. While making that decision, jurors will have to sort through a very complex 20 plus page verdict form.
Closings arguments were heard late Wednesday morning and into the afternoon.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Steve Mellin told jurors the only just punishment for his actions is a sentence of death.
“A death sentence is not giving him what he wants, it is giving him what he deserves,” said Mellin.
The government’s closing arguments detailed the gruesome suffering of three marathon bombing victim’s and slain MIT Police Officer Sean Collier.
Mellin’s voice cracked as he read a portion of Lingzi Lu’s eulogy, saying “it is so unbelievably sad and yet so true.”
The prosecution emphasized that these attacks were planned and intentional.
Mellin made a final push to disqualify the Defense’s assertion that his older brother was the mastermind behind the attacks, explaining that “Tamerlan Tsarnaev was not the defendant’s master, they were partners in crime and brothers in arms.”
The Defense told jurors that Dzhokhar was absolutely influenced by Tamerlan, saying, “if not for Tamerlan this would not have happened. The tragedy would not have occurred.”
Attorney Judy Clarke showed jurors pictures of a young Tsarnaev, reminding them of his upbringing. And, they were again told of the radical transformation that Tamerlan went through. Clarke repeatedly asked the jury to chose life, saying Tsarnaev is sorry and that this sentence will allow for redemption.
17 of the 30 counts that Tsarnaev was convicted of carry the possibility of the death penalty. In order for him to get that sentence all 12 of the jurors must unanimously agree.
Deliberations will resume Thursday morning.
© WLNE-TV 2015
