UPDATE: Dzhokhar Tsarnev Pleads Not Guilty to 30 Federal Charges. Due Back in Court on Sept. 23
There are those gathered outside of the Moakley Federal Courthouse in Boston seeking justice in the Boston Marathon bombings and there are those wishing to free primary suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev from custody. What’s taken off in the Twittersphere as the #FreeJahar movement has now taken to the streets where Tsarnaev is to be arraigned this afternoon.
The supporters of Dzhokhar “Jahar” Tsarnaev were encountered by many who feel the 19-year old was responsible for detonating the dual explosions near the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon with his older brother Tamerlan. Those in Tsarnaev’s corner came to the courthouse equipped with posters, t-shirts, and chants in support of the suspect. Those against him were armed with expletives and accusations that Jahar proponents are, to put it delicately, in the wrong.
Metro Boston writes of the matter,
“According to Free The Lion, an anonymously-led organization devoted to seeing Tsarnaev is protected by legal rights afforded to US citizens, there are thousands of people from across the globe who are skeptical of the government’s assertion that the teen is guilty.”
Of the thousands, only about a dozen appeared to demonstrate today, according to CBS. Despite the large number of Tsarnaev supporters, there are even more who think he’s red-handed guilty, including the 264 injured in the bombings and the family of the four who died as a result of the Marathon blasts. Many of the victims were subjected to amputations due to the severity of the wounds sustained.
Tsarnaev faces 30 criminal charges, including the use of weapons of mass destructions, 17 of which carry the weight of the death penalty. The arraignment today will be the first time Tsarnaev has faced the public since he was pulled from a Watertown, MA boat where he hid from police on April 19 before being apprehended. Be sure to tune into our live stream of the arraignment scheduled to take place at 3:30pm ET this afternoon.
