Current:Home > reviewsDefense attorneys for Boston Marathon bomber seek recusal of judge overseeing case -Excel Money Vision
Defense attorneys for Boston Marathon bomber seek recusal of judge overseeing case
View
Date:2025-04-18 00:36:18
BOSTON (AP) — Attorneys for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are seeking to remove the judge overseeing the protracted legal battle over Tsarnaev’s death sentence.
Tsarnaev’s lawyers said during a hearing in federal court in Boston on Wednesday that U.S. District Court Judge George O’Toole should be recused from the case, pointing to what they said were comments O’Toole made about the case on podcasts and at public events during the appeals process.
Prosecutors said they are not opposed to a hearing on the issue, but they said they believe the motion is meritless.
O’Toole scheduled a hearing on the recusal request for next month. Tsarnaev was not in court.
“I want to dispose of that issue immediately, one way or another,” O’Toole said.
During the hearing, O’Toole also said all future filings connected to the case are to be done under seal to protect the integrity of the process.
A victim of the bombing, Mikey Borgard, attended Wednesday’s hearing.
Borgard said he was walking home from work on the day of the marathon when the bombs exploded. He suffered hearing loss and from post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I was 21 when the marathon happened. I’m 33 now. This has been a very, very long process and I really kind of wish it was over,” said Borgard, who wear hearing aides. Despite his injuries, Borgard said opposes capital punishment.
“I very strongly oppose the death penalty and that’s across the board. It does not matter who you are, I think the death penalty is inhumane,” he said. “That is essentially an eye for an eye, and that is very old way of looking at things.”
A federal appeals court in March ordered O’Toole to investigate the defense’s claims of juror bias and to determine whether Tsarnaev’s death sentence should stand following his conviction for his role in the bombing that killed three people and injured hundreds near the marathon’s finish line in 2013.
If O’Toole finds jurors should have been disqualified, he should vacate Tsarnaev’s sentence and hold a new penalty-phase trial to determine if Tsarnaev should be sentenced to death, the appeals court said.
In 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death sentence imposed on Tsarnaev after the 1st Circuit threw out the sentence in 2020. The circuit court found then that the trial judge did not sufficiently question jurors about their exposure to extensive news coverage of the bombing. The Supreme Court justices voted 6-3 in 2022 when they ruled that the 1st Circuit’s decision was wrong.
The 1st Circuit took another look at the case after Tsarnaev’s lawyers urged it to examine issues the Supreme Court didn’t consider. Among them was whether the trial judge wrongly forced the trial to be held in Boston and wrongly denied defense challenges to seating two jurors they say lied during questioning.
Tsarnaev’s guilt in the deaths of those killed in the bombing was not at issue in the appeal. Defense lawyers have argued that Tsarnaev had fallen under the influence of his older brother, Tamerlan, who died in a gun battle with police a few days after the April 15, 2013, bombing.
Tsarnaev was convicted of all 30 charges against him, including conspiracy and use of a weapon of mass destruction and the killing of Massachusetts Institute of Technology Police Officer Sean Collier during the Tsarnaev brothers’ getaway attempt.
veryGood! (64)
Related
- Arkansas State Police probe death of woman found after officer
- U.S. files second antitrust suit against Google's ad empire, seeks to break it up
- 4 ways around a debt ceiling crisis — and why they might not work
- Bank of America says the problem with Zelle transactions is resolved
- Have Dry, Sensitive Skin? You Need To Add These Gentle Skincare Products to Your Routine
- If You're a Very Busy Person, These Time-Saving Items From Amazon Will Make Your Life Easier
- Jobs vs prices: the Fed's dueling mandates
- 4 ways around a debt ceiling crisis — and why they might not work
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Mung bean omelet, anyone? Sky high egg prices crack open market for alternatives
Ranking
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Rihanna Has Love on the Brain After A$AP Rocky Shares New Photos of Their Baby Boy RZA
- Tesla slashes prices across all its models in a bid to boost sales
- Want a balanced federal budget? It'll cost you.
- Trump suggestion that Egypt, Jordan absorb Palestinians from Gaza draws rejections, confusion
- Inside Clean Energy: An Energy Snapshot in 5 Charts
- Inside Clean Energy: Unpacking California’s Controversial New Rooftop Solar Proposal
- Yeah, actually, your plastic coffee pod may not be great for the climate
Recommendation
Selena Gomez engaged to Benny Blanco after 1 year together: 'Forever begins now'
Inside Clean Energy: General Motors Wants to Go Big on EVs
Charles Manson follower Leslie Van Houten released from prison after serving 53 years for 2 murders
As prices soar, border officials are seeing a spike in egg smuggling from Mexico
What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
Ex-staffer sues Fox News and former Trump aide over sexual abuse claims
Inside Clean Energy: 7 Questions (and Answers) About How Covid-19 is Affecting the Clean Energy Transition
At COP26, Youth Activists From Around the World Call Out Decades of Delay