http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/16/us/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-death-sentence.html Not too surprising, but part of me did think he could have gotten life, given his age and the fact that his brother has always been presented as the mastermind.
As you can imagine, it's been a closely watched trial in my neighborhood. Very emotional. Even in a state as liberal as Massachusetts there's been very little protest about this sentence.
No matter your feelings on the death penalty, the sentence of this young man sends the clear message that, as a society, we won't tolerate terrorist actions against Americans. Especially on our soil.
What is interesting is that the families didn't want the death sentence. From what I heard on CNN, that information wasn't allowed in court. Regardless of one's stance on the death penalty, these families are going to be punished over and over again for 10, 15, or more years going through the appeals process.
I think what tipped it was video shown to the jury of Tsarnaev planting the bomb, and he can clearly see that there are children directly in the blast radius. Then pictures 20 minutes later of him calmly buying and drinking some milk at a convenience store.
And who is this veritable sexual intellectual who graduated from Wushu College? Can you PM me and give me a hint? I really need some of those sweetpoints from a really pretty girl that I have a silly little school boy crush on.
I'm not so sure that for a person like this the death penalty is much of a punishment. You don't go into terrorism if you fear death as a repercussion. Now, an entire lifetime of confinement where you get to think about how much better your life could have been would be quite the punishment. Also, there is the possibility that at the age of 30, 40, 50, 60 or 70, he comes to realize how wrong he was for what he did and has to live the rest of his days in remorse. It's possible.
Two stories on the sentencing. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/17/us/death-sentence-for-boston-bomber-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-unsettles-city-he-tore-apart.html?_r=0 How Tsarnaev Was Sentenced to Death - Massachusetts news - Boston.com
I don't know about his personal beliefs, but many Muslim terrorists welcome death because it's matyrdom to them. Then, there is the whole belief about getting virgin wives and what not in the afterlife.
There were multiple occasions where he could have committed "suicide by cop" but in every case he chose to run/live. I know that Timothy McVeigh chose not to appeal his sentence but most people will fight to extend their lives as much as possible. Even life in prison is seen as preferable to death. I don't know what's in his mind but I'm guessing that he's not ready to cash in his chips yet.
