Page 7 - Guilt Phase News Today

Were being told top of the hour here, 3:00 eastern. i would imagine its somewhere between the two. let me bring you back ari, into the conversation. we heard ronan use two legal terms aggravating and mitigating. what do those terms mean? those are the different directions you can go with regard to penalty. the guilt phase is over. this is a convicted murderer. the only questions that the jury is looking at in the penalty phase is are there things about these murders that make them so bad it shou...

The way these things work the appeals will go on for a decade or more. >> pete, speak to us about now that we now that the jurys unanimous decision on several of these capital counts how we can understand the jury assessed and accepted many of the arguments the prosecution made about this convicted murderer? >> reporter: well, you know you go back to the guilt phase they found him guilty on every single count. remember what the jury -- what the defenses case came down to. they said the famous th...

Start of the penalty phase for convicted bomber dzhokhar tsarnaev. im joined by patricia wen from the boston globe. describe what its like coming on the heels of the dzhokhar tsarnaev verdict, found guilty on all 30 counts, then we have the marathon happening right before the start of the penalty phase. >> i think this is a very emotional time. fortunately todays event went smoothly, its a happy occasion. but tomorrow the trial really pivots into a whole new direction. the guilt phase obviously ...

The victims, those that died and those that managed to live through this horrific attack. im interested in what youre hearing from them. i mean are any of them saying what they want to see happen to dzhokhar tsarnaev in terms of punishment? >> well i think there have been some who liz norden for example the mother with two sons that each lost a leg, shes spoken out in favor of the death penalty. there are some other victims who said i think they are philosophically opposed. i think its been awkw...

They have to say we can apply the death penalty, which in effect sounds like you end up with a jury in boston any way, thats not representative of the community. >> i think the framers of the constitution would be turning over in their graves like this. jurors were supposed to represent the views of the choun community. it also brings about religious discrimination. can religious catholics serve on the jury or protestants that come from churches? its a very skewed system. it also gives the prose...

They have to say we can apply the death penalty, which in effect sounds like you end up with a jury, in boston any way, thats not representative of the community. >> i think the framers of the constitution would be turning over in their graves like this. jurors were supposed to represent the views of the community. it also brings about religious discrimination. can religious catholics serve on the jury or protestants that come from churches? its a very skewed system. it also gives the prosecutio...

Throughout the process, and do you have any prediction for this penl penalty phase? >> well, i believe that the government did the right thing in the guilt phase in that they took head on the motive why did this man join his brother to bomb this event and cause the deaths and the injury s thaties that he did. and so they will have less time devoted to debating whether there is any justification, and of course, there is not. one of the problems that the defense has in this case is that this parti...

Bruno. david, if you were on this jury, how would you vote? would you give him death? >> yeah, absolutely i would vote death. and it comes down to the jury will get this instruction. theyre going to have to balance mitt i getting factors versus aggravating factors. the aggravating factors are substantial. it goes to the planning, the preparation, the risk to others and also the cruel and heinous way that they did this. >> now what could cause them to go the other way? if youre sitting on that ju...

You can execute people is after 18 years old. he is only 22 years old. and so certainly i think the defense has to argue his age and that will be a strong part of the mitigating circumstance to get him a life sentence. >> this is a death penalty qualified panel, wendy and everybody on the jury said yes, i could vote for the death penalty if i feel it was warranted. does that mean it is a foregone conclusion he gets death? >> absolutely not. massachusetts is a state without a death penalty. they ...

So shes got one leg up by being in a leg that has demonstrated historically its view against the death penalty, but as your earlier piece indicated, nothing like facing the facts of the facts of young dead children or the injury caused to so many. >> yeah. you have a jury to vote for the death penalty obviously for the oklahoma city bomber, and you say that you were pretty confident throughout the proc s process, and do you have any prediction for the penalty phase? >> well, the government did t...