CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — A judge has set a hearing ahead of sentencing proceedings for the man convicted of killing nine black worshippers at a South Carolina church.
U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel has scheduled a pre-trial hearing for Dylann Roof on Dec. 28.
A jury found Roof guilty last week of 33 federal charges including hate crimes in the June 2015 attack at Charleston’s Emanuel AME Church. The same jury on Jan. 3 will begin hearing evidence as to why prosecutors feel Roof should be executed for his crimes.
The 22-year-old Roof is acting as his own lawyer during the sentencing phase. He notified the court last week in a handwritten motion he didn’t intend to introduce any evidence pertaining to his mental health.
A state death penalty trial is expected next year.