Free Republic

Families in the 2015 Charleston, S.C., church massacre have settled with the Department of Justice (DOJ) for some $88 million over a faulty gun background check that allowed to the shooter to buy the firearm he used, the two sides announced Thursday. The DOJ said in a statement that it settled with the 14 plaintiffs in the case, awarding between $6 million to $7.5 million for each of the nine people killed and $5 million for each survivor. The survivors and family members first alleged in 2016 that FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Checks System (NICS) failed to prevent the...

The defining photograph of the attempted insurrection on Jan. 6 was that of a man strolling through the broken halls of our national Capitol, amid the smashed windows and assorted rubble of the failed coup, proudly brandishing a Confederate flag on his shoulder and hoping to overturn an election decided largely by Black voters. It’s an image that tells the story not only of Jan. 6 or of the Trump presidency, but also of all the steps that led to that moment — the whole history of hate in America captured in one frame. This deadly connection between white supremacy...

On today's Morning Joe, Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson said "it’s hard to convince me that there’s not systemic racism in our policing" given that Dylann Roof, the white killer of nine black people in a Charleston church, was taken alive, whereas Rayshard Brooks was killed in Atlanta in the course of his arrest. But have a look at this news article which includes video of Roof's arrest, and states, "the video confirms the Shelby police department’s account that Roof surrendered meekly after he was approached by officers."Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

<p>White supremacist mass murderer Dylann Roof staged a hunger strike this month while on federal death row, alleging in letters to The Associated Press that he’s been “targeted by staff,” “verbally harassed and abused without cause” and “treated disproportionately harsh.”</p>

Sen. Bernie Sanders's (I., Vt.) support for extending voting rights to violent felons such as Dylann Roof, the racist gunman who murdered nine people at a black church in South Carolina, could prove problematic as the Democratic presidential candidates set their sights on the Palmetto State primary on February 29. Roof, who recently filed an appeal challenging his conviction and death sentence, is a widely despised individual. So is Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the Boston Marathon bomber who killed 3 and injured nearly 300 others in 2013. Like Roof, he is on death row. Sanders would not only spare their lives by...

The shooting that unfolded at a kosher market in Jersey City, N.J., was a "targeted" attack, according to officials who say at least one of the suspects had published anti-Semitic and anti-police posts online before opening fire Tuesday. Mayor Steven Fulop would not commit on Wednesday to calling the shooting an anti-Semitic attack, but said after reviewing surveillance footage, investigators believe the attack was plotted against the Jewish deli. He told reporters footage shows the gunmen passing by other shops before getting out of a van and aiming for the market.

As recently as a few years ago, the bowl cut was primarily known as an unfashionable hairstyle popular among toddlers whose parents cut their hair, and 1990s child stars. Over the past few years, however, the bowl cut has gone from shorthand for male uncoolness to a chilling symbol of racism and extremist violence, according to a recent report from the Anti-Defamation League. On Thursday morning, the ADL released its additions to its hate symbols database, a library of more than 200 symbols used by hate groups. In addition to entries such as the Happy Merchant, a meme of an...

An Ohio woman, one of two people accused on Monday of planning mass murders, was in contact with the racist gunman who shot up a South Carolina church and killed nine people in 2015, authorities said. Elizabeth Lecron, 23, of Toledo, was one of two people arrested in domestic terrorism-related cases, the FBI announced. Lecron was arrested with 21-year-old Damon Joseph, of Holland... The FBI said investigators found an AK-47, shotgun, handguns, ammunition and hand-caps, which are used to make pipe bombs, in her apartment. Authorities said she planned to attack a bar in Toledo and meet up with other...

The sister of Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof has been charged after deputies say she brought weapons to school on National Walkout Day. On Wednesday, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department said that 18-year-old Morgan Roof was charged with simple possession of marijuana and two counts of carrying a weapon on school grounds. Reportedly, a school resource officer was contacted by a school administrator after marijuana, pepper spray and a knife were found on Roof. There was also a social media post on Snapchat which caused students and staff to be alarmed.

Rapper Eminem released a brand-new track ahead of the final presidential debate titled “Campaign Speech.” The seven-minute freestyle rap covers a wide range of controversial news events that have surfaced during this election season — from the killing of Trayvon Martin, to Charleston church gunman Dylann Roof, to 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and his anti-cop demonstrations. Given the rap’s title, it’s no surprise that Donald Trump gets a mention. What is surprising, however, is the fact that Eminem of all people chose to bash Trump and his supporters, considering how much he and the Republican nominee have in common.

WASHINGTON — A note found in the car of a man charged with spraying deadly gunfire at a Tennessee church made reference to revenge for a white supremacist's massacre at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina, two years earlier, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. The note could offer a glimpse into Emanuel Kidega Samson's mindset at the time of Sunday's shooting and a possible motive for the rampage, which killed a woman and wounded six other people. The Associated Press has not viewed the note, but it was summarized in an investigative report circulating among law enforcement....

A white supremacist who was sentenced to death in the 2015 massacre of nine black worshippers has told a federal appeals court he wants to fire his appellate attorneys because one of them is Jewish and the other is Indian-American. In a handwritten request filed Monday with the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Virginia, Dylann Roof wrote that his attorneys’ backgrounds are “a barrier to effective communication.” Given their ethnicities, Roof wrote, “it is therefore quite literally impossible that they and I could have the same interests relating to my case.” ”Because of my political views, which...

A federal jury has sentenced Dylann Roof to death for killing nine black church members in a racially motivated attack in 2015.

CHARLESTON, S.C. — After nearly a week of painful testimony that vividly re-created the massacre at this city’s famed Mother Emanuel church, it took jurors about two hours Thursday to convict Dylann Roof in his federal hate crimes trial. Roof was charged with 33 counts in his federal indictment. He was found guilty on every single one. Family members of the nine parishioners gunned down last year nodded silently as each charge was read aloud. Some held hands, their eyes shut tightly, as each guilty verdict was announced in the courtroom just a mile from the church. With Roof’s guilt...

DEVELOPING – A jury in South Carolina Thursday convicted Dylann Roof in the racially-motivated shootings that killed nine black church members during a Bible study in Charleston last year. ADVERTISEMENT The jury of nine white people and three black people deliberated less than two hours before returning a verdict, finding him guilty on all counts against him. Roof, 22, faced 33 federal charges, including hate crimes and obstruction of the practice of religion.

A federal judge on Thursday denied a mistrial for accused white South Carolina gunman Dylann Roof, who a day earlier was described as "evil" in testimony by a survivor of the deadly June 2015 attack on a historic black church. Lawyers for Roof, 22, argued eyewitness Felicia Sanders had offered prejudicial and improper opinion about what penalty he should face. During her testimony on Wednesday, the first day of Roof's trial, she called the defendant "evil, evil as can be" for appearing to sit innocently through a Bible study meeting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston before opening...

Nikki Haley‘s response to Dylann Roof shooting up a church in the state that she governs and killing nine people hasn’t always been perfect. In fact, it’s been cringeworthy at times, but she deserves credit from supporters for eventually removing the Confederate flag from state grounds and denouncing its use altogether. She has a history of coming around on issues and then really hitting them hard. For evidence of that, look no further than her fearless takedown of Donald Trump during her response to President Barack Obama‘s State of the Union address this year. Now, she is joining Hillary Clinton...

For nearly a week now, Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign has refused to answer a simple yes or no question: whether she favors the Department of Justice’s decision to seek the death penalty for Dylann Roof, who is accused of killing nine people last year at a historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina.

Federal prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Dylann Roof, who is accused of killing nine people at a historic African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina, in July 2015. Roof, who is white, is charged with 33 federal offenses, including hate crime charges for allegedly targeting his victims on the basis of their race and religion. A judge entered a not guilty plea on his behalf in July 2015. "The nature of the alleged crime and the resulting harm compelled this decision," Attorney General Loretta Lynch said.

Federal prosecutors will seek the death penalty for a white man accused of killing nine black parishioners at a historic church in Charleston, South Carolina, last June, the U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday. “The nature of the alleged crime and the resulting harm compelled this decision,” Attorney General Loretta Lynch said in a statement. Dylann Roof, 22, is accused of opening fire on June 17, 2015, during a Bible study session at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston. …