Boston Marathon bombing survivors honoured 11 years on as lying juror probe underway
Survivors of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing will be honored at this year’s race on the 11th anniversary of the attack.
The city of Boston and the Boston Athletic Association honored the victims, survivors, and first responders of the attack at a wreath-laying ceremony on Monday at the site of the bombing which killed three people and injured hundreds of others.
The race was underway on Monday morning with 30,000 competitors taking part along with the world’s best long-distance runners.
Marcel Hug won the men’s wheelchair division, the first race of this year’s competition, and Eden Rainbow-Cooper took gold in the women’s wheelchair race.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said she is also encouraging acts of kindness in recognition of the city’s spirit of care for one another in response to the tragic events of April 15, 2013.
“One Boston Day brings our whole community together to take care of each other and spread goodwill,” Ms Wu said. “This year, I urge Bostonians to consider volunteering or carrying out a small act of kindness—whether joining a neighborhood cleanup, buying coffee for the person behind you, or sharing gratitude with our first responders along the Boston Marathon route.”
Three people, including a child, were killed when two pressure-cooker bombs exploded near the end of the marathon route 11 years ago. MIT Police Officer Sean Allen Collier was shot dead three days later.
Boston Police Officer Dennis “DJ” Simmonds died a year later from injuries he suffered during the manhunt for bombers.
Tamerlan Tsarnaev, one of the bombers, was killed during the manhunt. His accomplice and younger brother, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, was captured.
At his trial, he was found guilty of 30 federal crimes and given the death penalty. However, the trial has faced delays over claims of juror bias by his defense.
In March, a federal appeals court directed the judge who presided over Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s 2015 trial to investigate whether two jurors were biased.
The 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals stopped short of granting Tsarnaev’s bid to overturn his death sentence. However, it concluded that Judge George O’Toole’s earlier investigation into Tsarnaev’s claims that two jurors lied – about whether they had discussed the case on social media – “fell short of what was constitutionally required”.
The Court of Appeals said that if the lower court’s investigation reveals either person should have been disqualified, the court should vacate Tsarnaev’s death sentence and hold a new penalty-phase trial to determine whether he should sentenced to death.
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