White supremacist who shot and killed ten black shoppers in a racist massacre at a Buffalo supermarket pleads guilty to hate-motivated murder
- Payton Gendron used a semiautomatic rifle to carry out racist shooting in May
- On Monday, the 19-year-old plead guilty to murder, murder as a hate crime and hate-motivated domestic terrorism over the shooting in Buffalo grocery store
- Gendron also pleaded guilty to wounding three people who survived attack
The white supremacist who shot and killed ten black shoppers in a racist massacre at a Buffalo grocery store in May pleaded guilty to hate-motivated murder and terrorism charges today, guaranteeing that he will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Payton Gendron, 19, entered the plea in a courthouse roughly two miles from the store where he used a semiautomatic rifle and body armor to carry out the deadly assault he hoped would help preserve white power in the United States.
He pleaded guilty to all the charges in the grand jury indictment, including murder, murder as a hate crime and hate-motivated domestic terrorism, which carries an automatic sentence of life without parole. Gendron also pleaded guilty to wounding three people who survived the May attack.
The plea comes at a time when many Americans have become nearly desensitized to mass shootings. In recent weeks, there have been deadly attacks at a Walmart in Virginia, at a gay club in Colorado and at the University of Virginia.
Payton Gendron (pictured being led into a Gendron courtroom on Monday), 19, today entered the plea in a courthouse roughly two miles from the grocery store where he used a semiautomatic rifle and body armor to carry out a racist assault
Payton Gendron pleaded guilty to all the charges in the grand jury indictment, including murder, murder as a hate crime and hate-motivated domestic terrorism , which carries an automatic sentence of life without parole. Gendron also pleaded guilty to wounding three people who survived
Gendron, who appeared in court handcuffed and in an orange jumpsuit, showed little emotion through the 45-minute proceeding, just occasionally licking and clenching his lips.
He answered 'yes' and 'guilty' as the judge referred to each of the ten victims by name, and asked whether he killed each victim because of their race.
Immediate relatives of the victims were joined by Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown and the police commissioner in the courthouse gallery.
Many of the victim's relatives appeared to be crying, dabbing their eyes and sniffling. The judge urged calm from those present in the courtroom as the proceedings began.
'I understand this is a momentous and tremendously emotional event,' Judge Susan Eagan said.
Erie County District Attorney John Flynn described the result as 'swift justice', noting that it's the first time anyone in the state of New York has been found guilty of the hate-motivated terrorism charge.
The crimes were proven beyond a doubt through surveillance video and Gendron's own helmet camera, which produced images he streamed live during the shootings, as well as his own writings and statements, Flynn said.
'Their screams of fear and confusion are heard on the defendant's camera.'
Every victim was targeted because of their race, Flynn said, noting that Gendron spared and even apologized to a white person during the attack.
He modified a rifle into an illegal assault weapon so that he could kill as many African Americans, in as short a period of time, as he could, Flynn said.
'This critical step represents a condemnation of the racist ideology that fueled his horrific actions on May 14,' Gendron's lawyer, Brian Parker, said.
'It is our hope that a final resolution of the state charges will help in some small way to keep the focus on the needs of the victims and the community.'
Terrence Connors, an attorney for relatives of seven of the dead and two surviving victims, said earlier that Gendron had no plea agreement with prosecutors.
Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff visit a memorial near the site of the Buffalo supermarket shooting after attending a memorial service for Ruth Whitfield, one of the victims of the shooting, Saturday, May 28, 2022, in Buffalo
A person visits a makeshift memorial near the scene of Saturday's shooting at a supermarket, in Buffalo on May 19
Just days after Gendron's rampage in the Buffalo supermarket, a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a school in Uvalde, Texas.
Gendron previously entered a not guilty plea to separate federal hate crime charges that could result in a death sentence if he is convicted. The U.S. Justice Department has not said whether it will seek capital punishment in the case.
The teenager used a legally purchased AR-15 style rifle in his attack on the Tops Friendly Market in Buffalo. Wearing body armor, he livestreamed from a helmet-mounted camera as he brutally shot and killed store employees and shoppers.
Those killed ranged in age from 32 to 86 and included an armed security guard who died trying to protect customers, a church deacon, and the mother of a former Buffalo fire commissioner.
White supremacy was Gendron's motive for the shooting.
Michael Jordan and Heather Delorm, friends of Buffalo shooting victim Roberta Drury, visit a memorial for the victims of the Buffalo supermarket shooting outside the Tops Friendly Market on May 21
Gendron was arrested after allegedly killing 10 people at a Tops Market supermarket in Buffalo, Upstate New York. Police say the massacre was motivated by the 18 year-old's hatred for black people
He said in documents posted online just before the attack that he'd picked the store, about a three hour drive from his home in Conklin, New York, because it was in a predominantly Black neighborhood of Buffalo.
He said he was motivated by a belief in a massive conspiracy to dilute the power of white people by 'replacing' them in the U.S. with people of color - known as the 'Great Replacement' theory, which is popular among far-right groups.
Gendron surrendered after police confronted him as he emerged from the store, with pictures on the day showing him wearing camouflage clothing while being taken away in handcuffs.
Relatives of the victims have since called on Congress to address white supremacy and gun violence in the United States through legislation.
A sentencing hearing is expected at a later date. Gendron faces a sentence of life in prison without parole. New York does not have a death penalty.
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