Surviving victims in Tree of Life mass shooting react to decision to seek death penalty
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Members of one of the congregations targeted by the attack at the Tree of Life synagogue last year are “saddened and disappointed” by the government’s decision to seek the death penalty for accused gunman Robert Bowers.
Dor Hadash, one of the congregations worshipping inside Tree of Life the morning that police say Bowers shot and killed 11 people and injured six others, had asked U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr to offer a plea bargain of life in prison instead of a trial and potential execution.
“Today, we are saddened and disappointed to learn that Attorney General Barr will pursue a trial and seek the death penalty for the perpetrator of the attack on October 27, 2018,” the congregation said in a statement Monday evening.
Prosecutors on Monday filed paperwork in U.S. District Court outlining their case for capital punishment, which included allegations that:
• Bowers specifically targeted Jewish worshippers.
• The mass shooting was thought-out, intentional and targeted a vulnerable group of people.
• Bowers showed no remorse for the attack.
“A deal would have honored the memory of Dor Hadash congregant Dr. Jerry Rabinowitz, who was firmly and unequivocally opposed to the death penalty,” the congregation wrote in its statement. “It would have prevented the attacker from getting the attention and publicity that will inevitably come with a trial, and eliminated any possibility of further trauma that could result from a trial and protracted appeals.”
The Tree of Life congregation said it has no comment on the decision except that they have “confidence that justice will be served.”
Judah Samet, a Holocaust survivor and Tree of Life congregant, said Tuesday he’s not against the death penalty, but death eliminates the suspect’s suffering.
“Personally, I want to put him in solitary confinement for the rest of his life,” Samet said. “I want him to suffer.”
Samet arrived several minutes late to the Tree of Life building for services on Oct. 27. He pulled into a parking lot as the shooting was occurring.
Rabbi Jonathan Perlman of New Life, another congregation targeted in the attack, also asked Barr to seek life in prison for Bowers and not the death penalty.
Bowers, 46, of Baldwin faces 63 federal charges — 22 of which are punishable by death — in connection with the Oct. 27 mass shooting while Shabbat morning services were being held.
Staff writer Megan Guza contributed to this report.