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The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal from Dylann Roof, the convicted shooter in the Charleston, South Carolina church massacre. The decision, made on Monday (October 5), leaves intact a lower court ruling that rejected Roof's claims of judicial bias. Roof, now 32, was found guilty of killing nine African American parishioners at Mother Emanuel AME Church in 2015. He argued that his conviction and death sentence should be overturned due to alleged bias from U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel, who presided over his trial.
According to The Hill, Roof's lawyers contended that Judge Gergel's expressed interest in handling the case demonstrated a "constitutionally unacceptable appearance of bias." However, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals previously determined that Roof had not shown a "clear and indisputable right to recusal," dismissing the claims as hearsay.
Roof's appeal was part of ongoing efforts to challenge his conviction and death sentence. The Supreme Court had already refused to take up his appeal once before in 2022. As reported by Live 5 News, Roof's legal team argued that the alleged bias undermined the fairness of his trial. Despite these efforts, Roof remains on federal death row in Terre Haute, Indiana.
The case continues to attract public attention due to its racial implications and the severity of the crime. Roof, a self-proclaimed white supremacist, confessed that he intended to incite a race war with the attack. He represented himself during the sentencing phase of his trial, attempting to block evidence that could portray him as mentally ill. The Supreme Court's decision not to hear the appeal does not reflect an opinion on the case but rather a refusal to intervene in the ongoing legal proceedings.
Roof's legal challenges are expected to continue as he remains on death row. The Biden administration did not commute his death sentence, and no execution date has been set. As PBS NewsHour noted, Roof can still pursue other legal avenues in his appeal process.