*Nearly a month after the massacre at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina the left nine people dead, the man responsible for the tragedy has been indicted.
Reuters reports that the prosecutor in the case, Scarlett Wilson, revealed Tuesday (July 7) that Dylann Storm Roof was indicted by a grand jury on nine counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder. The news agency notes that state warrants had already charged Roof the nine murder counts as well as one count of possessing a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.
Wilson provided more details of the situation in a statement, saying that the grand jury was presented with three additional attempted murder charges related to people who survived the shooting. According to Reuters, Wilson declined to comment further on the case.
Roof’s indictment is the latest development to occur since the 21-year-old shot nine worshippers in a shooting rampage at Emanuel AME Church after spending an hour in an evening Bible study group on June 17. The legal action comes amid the passing of legislation by the South Carolina Senate on Tuesday to remove the Confederate battle flag from the statehouse grounds in Columbia. The flag, which is viewed as a symbol of white supremacy and hate, was seen in pictures with Roof, who posed with it at Civil War landmarks. The pictures are featured along with a white supremacist screed in a racist manifesto that appears to be written by Roof. The manifest, Reuters mentioned is being examined by federal investigators.
Despite the opposition, many others argue that the flag is actually a symbol of Southern heritage instead of racism. As it stands now, the bill to remove the flag must pass the state House of Representatives before it can be enacted.
In addition to the Confederate flag, the massacre at Emanuel AME Church has reignited discussion on race relations and crime in the United States as well as gun control.
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