Dzhokhar Tsarnaev remained motionless as a jury read off 30 guilty verdicts to a silent courtroom on Wednesday afternoon.
Guilty of using weapons of mass destruction, guilty of bombing a public place, guilty of conspiracy and aiding and abetting. Guilty, guilty, guilty: it seemed endless.
The jury also came to the conclusion that Tsarnaev caused the deaths of Krystle Campbell, Martin Richard, Lingzi Lu and Sean Collier—as in, he was also guilty of murder.
The jury of seven women and five men deliberated for 11 and a half hours before announcing the verdict in the Boston Marathon trial. Of the 30 guilty verdicts, 17 make Tsarnaev eligible for the death penalty.
“I hope today’s verdict provides a small amount of closure for the survivors, families and all impacted by the violent and tragic events surrounding the 2013 Boston Bombing,” Mayor Martin J. Walsh said. “The incidents of those days have forever left a mark on our city.”
The Boston Bombing trial has been exhausting and overwhelming to all those involved. Witnesses and families have filled the courtroom each day, listening to the defense and prosecution bicker back and forth over why such an act of terrorism happened. Physical evidence, much of it still coated in blood, was laid out for people to see, and screams echoed from videos replaying the events of that day.
The jury saw bombs explode and tear people apart. They examined photos of the Boston streets covered in blood and body parts. They listened to witnesses and friends and lawyers. They saw surveillance photos of Tsarnaev strolling through the aisles of Whole Foods and smiling at his college gym shortly after the bombing.
The guilty verdict was a monumental win for the defense, but it's not the end of the tough legal battles. The trial will resume, possibly early next week, to determine Tsarnaev’s punishment.
The jury must now decide if the man who committed the unspeakably violent acts of April 15, 2013 will spend the rest of this life in prison, or if he will face a death sentence.
