NPR: Boston bombing sentencing verdict coming in now.

[Deleted]

Anyone else following live?

[txngrl31]

I am!

We lived not far from the finish line, were en route when it happened, lived the whole week in terror and stayed locked in an entire day when they couldn't find him.

[Deleted]

Agreed. I'm generally anti death penalty because of the cost of actually putting someone to death... the appeals, the extra cost to house them on death row, the fact that so few of them actually get executed. And, not in this case, but sometimes the possibility they have the wrong person. Knowing they have the right guy here it's hard to not want him dead, but death seems like the easy way out. Lock his sorry ass away in the Super Max and let him rot.

[sidneyvicious]

Trying to. This one gets me so emotional!

[Deleted]

Well shit. On one hand, I get the severity of this crime and fully understand why a jury would go there under these circumstances. On the other, now the victims get to go through years and year and years of appeals, hearings, etc, while this runs its course on the taxpayers dime and his face stays in the public eye.

Is what it is. I just hope we get from here to execution quickly for the victims' sake.

[txngrl31]

Honestly, my husband and I were both for the death penalty in this case, but we didn't think it would happen because the jurors are from Massachusetts. Guess we were wrong!

[Deleted]

May 15, 2015 14:31:57 GMT -5 @kej0004 said:

Well hell. I wonder how long the appeals will take...

It took eight years to execute Timothy McVeigh in 2001 and it was the last federal prisoner executed.  Every Federal death penalty verdict since then, they are still sitting and waiting.  




Sorry... I can't math.   It was six years. 

[erbear]

I had hoped he'd rot in jail. The appeals process with be super long.

[teenybird]

May 15, 2015 14:25:25 GMT -5 @jimbobcooter said:

Agreed. I'm generally anti death penalty because of the cost of actually putting someone to death... the appeals, the extra cost to house them on death row, the fact that so few of them actually get executed. And, not in this case, but sometimes the possibility they have the wrong person. Knowing they have the right guy here it's hard to not want him dead, but death seems like the easy way out. Lock his sorry ass away in the Super Max and let him rot.

I second this. I'm actually kind of surprised they gave him the death penalty. I thought the vote had to be unanimous, so that says a lot if my recollection is correct. What a sad situation all around. Hoping for peace for all the families involved.

[ravinraven216]

May 15, 2015 14:35:08 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

Honestly, my husband and I were both for the death penalty in this case, but we didn't think it would happen because the jurors are from Massachusetts. Guess we were wrong!

I read that the jurors had to be open to the idea of the death penalty to serve in this case. 

If if it had been the older brother I might not be so fussed, but I can't help feel sorry for this kid who was essentially brainwashed into following along and now has to bear the full measure of blame. 

[txngrl31]

May 15, 2015 21:26:36 GMT -5 ravinraven216 said:

May 15, 2015 14:35:08 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

Honestly, my husband and I were both for the death penalty in this case, but we didn't think it would happen because the jurors are from Massachusetts. Guess we were wrong!

I read that the jurors had to be open to the idea of the death penalty to serve in this case. 

If if it had been the older brother I might not be so fussed, but I can't help feel sorry for this kid who was essentially brainwashed into following along and now has to bear the full measure of blame. 

While I always respect the opinions of others, I don't even know how to respond to your last sentence. After living through it, mourning with the entire city and seeing how much it has affected the victims over the years, I wholeheartedly disagree with your statement. 

[kemdupuis]

Like @s.coffey1123, I'm upset that they gave him death- I think he will absolutely turn this into him being a martyr. I think life in prison is a much worse sentence- to know someone is going to have to live out the rest of their days in a tiny little box- never allowed out. I think that is way worse. Especially since he is so young. I feel really awful for the victims, their families, and Boston- it's going to be a long and grueling appeals process. Hopefully they can all find some sort of peace in this whole situation.

[PurpleIris]

May 16, 2015 5:35:38 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

May 15, 2015 21:26:36 GMT -5 ravinraven216 said:

I read that the jurors had to be open to the idea of the death penalty to serve in this case. 

If if it had been the older brother I might not be so fussed, but I can't help feel sorry for this kid who was essentially brainwashed into following along and now has to bear the full measure of blame. 

While I always respect the opinions of others, I don't even know how to respond to your last sentence. After living through it, mourning with the entire city and seeing how much it has affected the victims over the years, I wholeheartedly disagree with your statement. 

Agreed. I live in one of the towns that was on lockdown when they were on the run, I have no sympathy for this "kid", I was much more concerned with my own kid being safe while the two brothers were out there.

I am ambivalent about the death penalty in general, and still haven't decided quite how I feel about the decision.

[trixi282]

I'm torn on the decision as well - I think rotting in hi-max, and even in solitary for the rest of his days would make him suffer more.

I'm also a cold heartless bitch that thinks that it's not wrong to make people suffer to die when they've done that to others. When people are all butt hurt about the injections making these murderers shake and suffer for 5 minutes before dying, I think "Good - that asshole killed and physically hurt X amount of people and scarred so many more emotionally and mentally, he deserves to suffer, just like he made them."

I know it's part of the law, that it should be civil and humane...

[ravinraven216]

May 16, 2015 5:35:38 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

May 15, 2015 21:26:36 GMT -5 ravinraven216 said:

I read that the jurors had to be open to the idea of the death penalty to serve in this case. 

If if it had been the older brother I might not be so fussed, but I can't help feel sorry for this kid who was essentially brainwashed into following along and now has to bear the full measure of blame. 

While I always respect the opinions of others, I don't even know how to respond to your last sentence. After living through it, mourning with the entire city and seeing how much it has affected the victims over the years, I wholeheartedly disagree with your statement. 

My sincere apologies. I haven't heard a great deal about the details of the trial itself and what I did hear, mostly about the defense basing their case around Tamerlan being the mastermind who brainwashed his brother, led me to wonder if the sentence passed yesterday would have been the same if Tamerlan had been alive and had stood trial. Would they both have received the death penalty? Would the jury have sentenced Tamerlan to death and given his brother life in prison? Without one of the perpetrators alive to stand trial, the sentence of death just seems more heavy handed than it otherwise would. Like the scene in "Dead Man Walking" where it is revealed that Poncelet was actually guilty, but that his accomplice escaped justice. It makes one simultaneously angry that Poncelet had claimed to be innocent when he wasn't and at the same time upset that circumstances were such that he was to be held responsible for the actions of another.

I hope that explains a bit better. We might still disagree, but thanks for being civil about it. 

[txngrl31]

May 16, 2015 8:17:23 GMT -5 ravinraven216 said:

May 16, 2015 5:35:38 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

While I always respect the opinions of others, I don't even know how to respond to your last sentence. After living through it, mourning with the entire city and seeing how much it has affected the victims over the years, I wholeheartedly disagree with your statement. 

My sincere apologies. I haven't heard a great deal about the details of the trial itself and what I did hear, mostly about the defense basing their case around Tamerlan being the mastermind who brainwashed his brother, led me to wonder if the sentence passed yesterday would have been the same if Tamerlan had been alive and had stood trial. Would they both have received the death penalty? Would the jury have sentenced Tamerlan to death and given his brother life in prison? Without one of the perpetrators alive to stand trial, the sentence of death just seems more heavy handed than it otherwise would. Like the scene in "Dead Man Walking" where it is revealed that Poncelet was actually guilty, but that his accomplice escaped justice. It makes one simultaneously angry that Poncelet had claimed to be innocent when he wasn't and at the same time upset that circumstances were such that he was to be held responsible for the actions of another.

I hope that explains a bit better. We might still disagree, but thanks for being civil about it. 

Exactly-you heard the defense, which is based on the idea that he was "brainwashed" so that he would get life in prison. This ADULT chose to place that backpack in front of an 8 year old boy, return to school like nothing happened and have absolutely no remorse or emotion over what he did. He did not even plea for his life. Did you not see what he inscribed in the boat while hiding out like a coward? I can almost guarantee that if his brother were still alive, they both would have suffered the same fate. This ADULT represents evil. HE and his brother are responsible for four murders, hundreds of life changing injuries and emotional distress, and acts of terrorism against the US. There was nothing " heavy handed" about this sentence. Making an excuse for his behavior and actions is just disgustingly wrong. 

[kemdupuis]

May 16, 2015 8:46:51 GMT -5 txngrl31 said:

May 16, 2015 8:17:23 GMT -5 ravinraven216 said:

My sincere apologies. I haven't heard a great deal about the details of the trial itself and what I did hear, mostly about the defense basing their case around Tamerlan being the mastermind who brainwashed his brother, led me to wonder if the sentence passed yesterday would have been the same if Tamerlan had been alive and had stood trial. Would they both have received the death penalty? Would the jury have sentenced Tamerlan to death and given his brother life in prison? Without one of the perpetrators alive to stand trial, the sentence of death just seems more heavy handed than it otherwise would. Like the scene in "Dead Man Walking" where it is revealed that Poncelet was actually guilty, but that his accomplice escaped justice. It makes one simultaneously angry that Poncelet had claimed to be innocent when he wasn't and at the same time upset that circumstances were such that he was to be held responsible for the actions of another.

I hope that explains a bit better. We might still disagree, but thanks for being civil about it. 

Exactly-you heard the defense, which is based on the idea that he was "brainwashed" so that he would get life in prison. This ADULT chose to place that backpack in front of an 8 year old boy, return to school like nothing happened and have absolutely no remorse or emotion over what he did. He did not even plea for his life. Did you not see what he inscribed in the boat while hiding out like a coward? I can almost guarantee that if his brother were still alive, they both would have suffered the same fate. This ADULT represents evil. HE and his brother are responsible for four murders, hundreds of life changing injuries and emotional distress, and acts of terrorism against the US. There was nothing " heavy handed" about this sentence. Making an excuse for his behavior and actions is just disgustingly wrong. 

Also, he has shown NO remorse. They've got footage of him flipping off the security cameras when he was being held in prison, his blank stare during the trial.. doesn't strike me as someone who was brainwashed. He chose to do the things he did, and should absolutely pay for his actions.

[Deleted]

Agree with the above. Maybe it was the older brother who originally put the plan together but he was an adult who willingly went along with it and has shown zero remorse and stood behind a group of children for four minutes before leaving a massive bomb that he knew would blow them to bits. He made that horrific choice. Regardless of the fact that I would rather see him rot in super max for the rest of his life instead getting the death penalty, I feel zero sympathy for this piece of shit.