The man charged in the deadliest attack on Jewish people in U.S. history has lost another bid to get the death penalty removed as a possible punishment.
With jury selection underway at the federal trial of Robert Bowers, a judge ruled Tuesday against a defense motion that challenged the government’s pursuit of the death penalty.
U.S. District Judge Robert Colville said in his decision that Bowers’ defense team “fails entirely to establish a basis upon which the court could conclude that the government has arbitrarily sought the death penalty in this case.”
Bowers, of the Pittsburgh suburb of Baldwin, is charged with 63 criminal counts in the killings of 11 worshippers on Oct. 27, 2018, at the Tree of Life synagogue building where three congregations had gathered. The charges include 11 counts of obstruction of free exercise of religion resulting in death and 11 counts of hate crimes resulting in death.
Prosecutors say Bowers made antisemitic comments at the scene of the attacks and in earlier online forums.
More than 100 potential jurors have been questioned by prosecutors and the defense through the first seven days of jury selection, with a heavy focus on their views on a potential death sentence. The process resumed Wednesday.
Bowers’ attorneys already offered a guilty plea in return for a life sentence without parole, but prosecutors refused and are seeking the death penalty, a move most of the victims’ families support. Most of the juror questioning by Bowers’ attorneys has focused on jurors’ views on the death penalty.
In a legal filing last month, Bowers’ lawyers argued the Justice Department lacks “a discernible, principled basis” for seeking death against Bowers but not for defendants in comparable cases. The defense also objected to the procedure by which the government considered Bowers’ request to reconsider its pursuit of capital punishment.
Colville agreed with the Justice Department’s argument that Bowers failed to account for the differences between his case and the other cases for which the government did not seek the death penalty.
The synagogue massacre case has already spanned two presidencies.
Republican President Donald Trump, who was in office at the time, declared the killer should “suffer the ultimate price” and that the death penalty should be brought back “into vogue.” Federal executions resumed during Trump’s presidency after a 17-year hiatus, and 13 federal inmates were put to death during his last six months in office.
Democrat Joe Biden indicated during the 2020 campaign he would work to end the federal death penalty, but critics say he has done nothing to make that happen. The Justice Department put in place a moratorium in order to study current policies and procedures. However, that has not prevented federal prosecutors from pursuing a death sentence for Bowers.
(AP)
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11 Responses
That’ll be the day . They’ll have every “bleeding heart” screaming
I knew one of the murdered. I’ll happy volunteer to hit the switch.
No matter how many times you call it a synagogue: IT WAS NOT A SYNAGOGUE! Reform and Conservative are different religions further removed from Judaism than Islam or Christianity. Very important to realize that.
Because they don’t believe in Torah min haShamayim
Yanky1998 : What is your point?
These were Jewish people targeted because they were Jews in their Synagogue.
You sound very prejudiced against Jewish people who don’t keep the Mitzvos the way youyou .compare them to Christians or Muslims.
Your Jewish Blood is not thicker than the people in this Synagogue!
prayer: most of them might be Jews but again, what they are practicing is not Judaism. A movement that allows for atheist rabbis and doesn’t consider belief in Hashem to be vital to Jewish observance is NOT Judaism. As Ben Shapiro says: facts don’t care about your feelings
Yanky1998
Might be Jews? They were Jewish. Whi are you to judge them?
It sounds to me you are living in a bubble with Jewish people who only fit your mold. Wake up.and meet all the beautiful Jewish people in the world that didn’t have your upbringing but are just as Jewish as you.
It doesn’t matter what they practice. They are still as Jewish as you are.
You are debating about Judaism and movements and totally not feeling pain that your fellow Jew was killed.
I cried when I read about mu sisters and brothers being killed.
Your views are those of. Sinas Chinom.
Where is your Ahavas Yisroel?
– They are not as Jewish as a Yid who has יראת שמים and lives out everyday the מצות of Hashem
– It is a Synagogue (synagogue just means “Jewish House of Worship”)
– A conservative synagogue is a מקום של כפירה. A Jew is not allow to enter or show support in any way.
Baby Squirrel,
OMG. Where did you get your Chinuch?
Not in a Jewish school for sure.
“They are not as Jewish as a Yid who has יראת שמים and lives out everyday the מצות of Hashem”.
You don’t know Halachah and you are probably not Jewish yourself.
Besides not knowing what Halacha is your comments are so inhumane. Sickening!
If you are Jewish which I don’t think your are go ask a reliable Posek.
Most likely you don’t know any!
מִי שֶׁאֵינוֹ מוֹדֶה בַּתּוֹרָה שֶׁבְּעַל פֶּה אֵינוֹ זָקֵן מַמְרֵא הָאָמוּר בַּתּוֹרָה. אֶלָּא הֲרֵי זֶה בִּכְלַל הָאֶפִּיקוֹרוֹסִין [וּמִיתָתוֹ בְּכָל אָדָם]: מֵאַחַר שֶׁנִּתְפַּרְסֵם שֶׁהוּא כּוֹפֵר בַּתּוֹרָה שֶׁבְּעַל פֶּה [מוֹרִידִין אוֹתוֹ] וְלֹא מַעֲלִין וַהֲרֵי הוּא כִּשְׁאָר כָּל הָאֶפִּיקוֹרוֹסִין וְהָאוֹמְרִין אֵין תּוֹרָה מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם וְהַמּוֹסְרִין וְהַמּוּמָרִין. שֶׁכָּל אֵלּוּ אֵינָם בִּכְלַל יִשְׂרָאֵל וְאֵין צָרִיךְ לֹא לְעֵדִים וְלֹא הַתְרָאָה וְלֹא דַּיָּנִים [אֶלָּא כָּל הַהוֹרֵג אֶחָד מֵהֶן עָשָׂה מִצְוָה גְּדוֹלָה וְהֵסִיר הַמִּכְשׁוֹל]:
“A person who does not acknowledge validity of the Oral Law is not the rebellious elder mentioned in the Torah. Instead, he is one of the heretics and he should be put to death by any person.”
“Since it has become known that such a person denies the Oral Law, he may be pushed into a pit and may not be helped out. He is like all the rest of the heretics who say that the Torah is not Divine in origin, those who inform on their fellow Jews, and the apostates. All of these are not considered as members of the Jewish people. There is no need for witnesses, a warning, or judges for them to be executed. Instead, whoever kills them performs a great mitzvah and removes an obstacle from people at large.”
הלכות ממרים – פרק ג
In order to be a considered a Jew you must be a member of Nation of Israel (which they are, some of them), believe in the Rambam’s 13 Principles of Faith including that the Torah is מן השמים and cannot be changed, and follow all the הלכות properly.