America’s Absolute Justice

Dylann Roof waited almost 45 minutes for the 12 church goers to rise and close their eyes for prayers before he fired 77 bullets, killing nine. Survivor Felicia Sanders saw Roof draw a Glock .45-caliber handgun and methodically shoot worshipper after worshipper. Sanders saw her family die before her, dropping on the linoleum floor. She smeared herself with blood, with her granddaughter in her arms, in the hopes that the killer would think they were already dead.

Dylann Roof was found guilty. With eyewitness testimony, video surveillance, the murder weapon in his possession, and his own confession, there was no doubt that Dylann Roof was the murderer. Nevertheless, it took almost six months for Roof to be found guilty in the court of law. Evidentiary hearings, a grand jury, and other safeguards were put into motion for a man who clearly murdered innocent people. Although such a justice system may appear to be inefficient, it is these due process rights for defendants that make us a just nation.

Often when such events occur in nations such as Pakistan, justice looks the other way. In May 2010, two mosques of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community were attacked in a simultaneous killing of over 80 people and injury of more than 100. Yet after such a tragedy, arrests were made but no guilty verdicts were found despite an abundance of evidence.