BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Federal prosecutors announced on Friday their intention to seek the death penalty for Payton Gendron, a white supremacist who killed 10 Black individuals at a Buffalo supermarket. Gendron, currently serving a life sentence without parole after pleading guilty to state charges of murder and hate-motivated domestic terrorism, will face separate federal hate crimes charges for which prosecutors are pursuing capital punishment.
The decision represents the first time President Joe Biden’s Justice Department has authorized a new pursuit of the death penalty. The state of New York does not have capital punishment, but federal law allows for the option in certain cases. Gendron had offered to plead guilty in the federal case if the prosecution agreed not to seek the death penalty.
According to U.S. Attorney Trini Ross, who is overseeing the case in western New York, extensive planning was evident in the shooting, including the selection of the location – a Tops Friendly Market situated in Buffalo’s predominantly Black East Side neighborhood – intended to maximize the number of Black victims. The attack occurred on May 14, 2022, when Gendron drove over 200 miles from his rural Conklin, New York, home to the market. Livestreaming the horrifying event from a camera attached to his tactical helmet, Gendron opened fire, resulting in the deaths of eight supermarket customers, the store security guard, and a church deacon who had been assisting shoppers with their groceries.
The victims, aged 32 to 86, elicited mixed views from their loved ones regarding the pursuit of the death penalty. Mark Talley, whose mother, Geraldine Talley, was among those killed, expressed understanding for the decision, despite his personal preference that Gendron spend his life incarcerated. Talley stated, It would have satisfied me more knowing he would have spent the rest of his life in prison being surrounded by the population of people he tried to kill.
Relatives of the victims met with prosecutors prior to the public announcement. Pamela Pritchett, whose mother, Pearl Young, was one of the victims, described the mood during the meeting as somber. She acknowledged that scars would remain and spoke of her personal journey toward healing.
Notably, attorney Sonya Zoghlin, representing Gendron, expressed disappointment with the government’s choice to seek the death penalty, noting that her client was only 18 years old at the time of the shooting. Zoghlin urged the government to focus its efforts on addressing factors contributing to such crimes, such as access to deadly weapons and the failure of social media companies to moderate hate speech circulating online.
While President Biden is personally opposed to capital punishment, he has allowed two capital prosecutions to proceed under the leadership of Attorney General Merrick Garland and has withdrawn from seeking the death penalty in over two dozen cases. Garland instituted a moratorium on federal executions in 2021 as a review of procedures was underway. It is worth mentioning that, although this moratorium does not prevent the pursuit of death sentences, the Justice Department has substantially reduced their usage.
Gendron’s case represents a high-profile example of the Justice Department’s approach to capital punishment under the current administration. The department successfully sought the death penalty for the perpetrator of an antisemitic attack that claimed 11 lives at a Pittsburgh synagogue. They also pursued the death sentence against an Islamic extremist responsible for killing eight people on a New York City bike path, although a lack of a unanimous jury resulted in a life sentence instead.
Conversely, the Justice Department declined to pursue the death penalty in other acts of mass violence, including the case of the gunman who killed 23 individuals at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas.
As the legal proceedings progress, the case against Payton Gendron will put a spotlight on the complex debate surrounding the use of capital punishment in the United States.
