Calay News
Federal prosecutors have announced their intention to seek the death penalty against Payton Gendron, a white supremacist responsible for a mass shooting that claimed the lives of 10 black individuals in a Buffalo supermarket. Gendron is currently serving a life sentence with no chance of parole after pleading guilty to state charges related to the 2022 attack.
While New York doesn’t have capital punishment, the Justice Department can opt for the death penalty in a separate federal hate crimes case. Gendron had offered to plead guilty in exchange for prosecutors not seeking the death penalty in that case.
In the court filing on Friday, the Justice Department highlighted the substantial planning involved in the shooting, including the selection of the location—a Tops Friendly Market in the predominantly black East Side neighborhood of the city—with the intention of maximizing the number of black victims.
Trini Ross, the US attorney for western New York, cited the meticulous planning as a justification for seeking the death penalty. Relatives of the victims expressed mixed feelings about the decision, with some preferring a life sentence for Gendron.
Gendron, 20 years old at the time of the attack, drove over 200 miles to carry out the shooting, livestreaming the massacre from a camera attached to his tactical helmet. The victims, ranging in age from 32 to 86, included customers, a store security guard, and a church deacon.
The pursuit of the death penalty by the Justice Department underlines the severity of the case, with Attorney General Merrick Garland authorizing this move. Garland, who opposes capital punishment, has maintained a limited approach to seeking the death penalty, making this decision a rare occurrence under his leadership.
