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A federal jury in Pennsylvania ruled Thursday that Robert Bowers, the convicted gunman who killed 11 worshipers at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh in October 2018, is eligible for the death penalty.
Prosecutors have been seeking such a punishment after Bowers was found guilty in mid-June of all 63 criminal counts facing him, including hate crimes resulting in death and obstruction of the free exercise of religion resulting in death.
The jury Thursday sided with prosecutors who argued that Bowers -- who spent six months planning the attack and has since expressed regret that he did not kill more people -- had formed the requisite legal intent to kill.
The trial will now move to a final phase to determine if Bowers will be sentenced to death or life in prison. If jurors decide Bowers deserves to die, it would be the first federal death sentence imposed during President Biden’s presidency.
PITTSBURGH SYNAGOGUE SHOOTER FOUND GUILTY OF KILLING 11 IN FEDERAL DEATH PENALTY TRIAL
Robert Bowers, 50, the truck driver who shot and killed 11 worshipers at a Pittsburgh synagogue in the nation's deadliest attack on Jewish people. (Pennsylvania Department of Transportation/Matt Rourke/AP)
Bowers’ lawyers had argued that his ability to form intent was impaired by mental illness and a delusional belief that he could stop genocide of White people by killing Jews.
On Oct. 27, 2018, Bowers opened fire with an AR-15 rifle and other guns at the Pennsylvania synagogue. Seven people were wounded, including five police officers.
"I am grateful to God for getting us to this day," Rabbi Jeffrey Myers of the Tree of Life Congregation, who survived the attack, said in a written statement after the verdict for Bowers’ criminal trial was announced. "And I am thankful for the law enforcement who ran into danger to rescue me, and the U.S. Attorney who stood up in court to defend my right to pray."
WHO IS ROBERT BOWERS? PITTSBURGH SYNAGOGUE SHOOTER POSTED VIEWS ONLINE
A Star of David hangs from a fence outside the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh's Squirrel Hill neighborhood in April 2023. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)
Carole Zawatsky, CEO of the Tree of Life Congregation, also told The Associated Press at the time that she hoped the criminal trial verdict would provide survivors and victims’ family members with "some level of comfort and helps to ease the pain, even if ever so slightly."
Two hours before Bowers burst into the Tree of Life Synagogue and opened fire during a Shabbat service, he posted on the chat site Gab.com about the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, the New York Times has previously reported.
"HIAS likes to bring invaders in that kill our people. I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I’m going in," a message attributed to Bowers said.
A damaged prayer book sits in the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh following a shooting that left 11 people dead. The perpetrator, Robert Bowers, was characterized by prosecutors as a rabid anti-Semite whose seething hatred of Jews led him to treat the house of worship as a "hunting ground." (U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania via AP)
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HIAS, a Maryland-based nonprofit, helps refugees around the world and is guided by Jewish values, according to the organization.
Police said Bowers had 21 guns registered in his name and was not known to law enforcement before the shooting. He is a registered voter with "no affiliation" in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.
Fox News’ Maria Paronich, Louis Casiano and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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