BUFFALO, N. Y. — The gunman convicted of killing 10 people last year in a racist mass shooting inside a Buffalo supermarket was sentenced to life in prison without parole Wednesday.
On May 14, 2022, 19-year-old Payton Gendron opened fire inside Tops supermarket, wearing body armor and a helmet, which he used to livestream the attack. He shot 13 people with a semi-automatic rifle. Only three survived.
All of his victims were Black. “After selecting our city as the target of his terror attack, this defendant shot innocent African American citizens as they were shopping for groceries on a Saturday afternoon. Violence, especially violence motivated by hate, will not be tolerated.
We sought to obtain justice for the victims and our community by prosecuting this defendant to the fullest extent of the law. Today, I am pleased to announced that Payton Gendron will be spending the rest of his life behind bars. While we may never fully heal from this horrific crime, I continue to pray for all who have been impacted by this tragedy,” said Erie County District Attorney John Flynn.
Among those killed was a church deacon, a grandmother of nine, and a man shopping for a birthday cake. “He went to that store to get a cake for my little brother because May 14 is his birthday and he turned 3 years old and he didn’t get to celebrate his birthday with his dad because he never came back,” Deja Brown said of victim Andre Mackniel. Prior to the sentencing, there was an outburst in court.
Gendron struck a deal to avoid a possible death penalty for the massacre. Some of the family members left behind were overwhelmed with emotions. “You come to our city and decide you don’t like Black people.
We love our kids!” one man said as he charged Gendron. That man was quickly ushered out by court officers. Earlier Wednesday morning, the heartbreak was palpable as someone from each of the 10 families told a judge about their unimaginable loss and spoke directly to the shooter.
“While writing this, tears fell from my eyes thinking about the beautiful person you took,” said Wayne Jones, son of victim Celestine Chaney. “Our grandmother had a strong and resilient spirit. She may not be present for our milestones, but you should know her legacy will outlive you.
You will simply go from a name to a number. You will be herded like cattle. You will miss out on family events.
You will be nameless and faceless and we feel sorry for you,” said Simone Whitfield, granddaughter of victim Ruth Whitfield. “You thought you broke us, but you awoke us. We know the pure hatred behind your heinous crime.
We are here to tell you that you failed. We will continue to be everything you hate and everything you intended to destroy. ” “What can you possibly say after putting on a video of killing people? It was like a video game to you.
What can you possibly say?” said Brian Tally, victim Geraldine Tally’s brother-in-law. “How do I look at her Christmas stocking hanging every year? Today, when I think of Robby, I don’t think of her like this. I have this picture to remind me she was a beautiful girl.
All I think of is her lying on the pavement alone for hours,” Dezzelynn McDuffie said of her daughter, Roberta Drury. The sentencing was not be the end of Gendron’s legal battles. He still faces federal hate crime charges .
Jessica Moore is an Emmy Award-winning anchor for the weekend evening newscasts on CBS 2 and WLNY 10/55. Moore joined the stations in July, 2016. .
From: newyorkcbslocal
URL: https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/buffalo-supermarket-shooter-sentenced-to-life-without-parole/
