4th Circuit appeals court upholds Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof's death sentence

The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the death sentence of Dylann Roof, the white supremacist responsible for the 2015 Charleston church massacre.

Roof had appealed his convictions and death sentence in January 2020, arguing he had schizophrenia and suffered from other psychological disorders.

Roof was convicted of gunning down nine people inside Emanuel AME Church in Charleston during a Bible study on June 17, 2015.

"Dylann Roof murdered African Americans at their church, during their Bible-study and worship. They had welcomed him. He slaughtered them," the 149-page opinion states.

The appeals court published its opinion on Wednesday, stating that the conclusion came as a result of a "thorough analytical process" and not as a "product of emotion."

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"No cold record or careful parsing of statutes and precedents can capture the full horror of what Roof did," the opinion states. "His crimes qualify him for the harshest penalty that a just society can impose."

Roof was captured by law enforcement in Shelby, North Carolina a day after the Charleston shooting.

Emanuel AME in Charleston is the oldest Black church in the South.

State Sen. Clementa Pinckney, Emanuel AME's pastor, was among the nine shot and killed during the massacre.

During his federal trial, prosecutors said Roof told FBI agents he wanted the shootings to to bring back segregation or start a race war.

"When apprehended, he frankly confessed, with barely a hint of remorse," the opinion states.

Check back with greenvilleonline.com for more on this developing story.

Daniel J. Gross is an investigative watchdog reporter focusing on public safety and law enforcement for The Greenville News. Reach him at dgross@greenvillenews.com or on Twitter @danieljgross. Subscribe to The Greenville News at greenvillenews.com/subscribe.