CHARLESTON, S.C. _ Videos, documents and a transcript that could be among the government's evidence in the upcoming federal Dylann Roof death penalty trial have been placed under seal by U.S. Judge Richard Gergel, according to court filings.
The items are, at least for the time being, deemed so potentially provocative as to taint the outlooks of potential jurors in the case, according to the filings.
"Sealing of these items is necessary because their public disclosure could affect the court's ability to select an impartial jury and conduct a fair trial in this high-profile, Federal Death Penalty Act case," according to a motion filed by two of Roof's defense lawyers, David Bruck and Sarah Gannett.
"Any disclosure would reveal information that could affect jury selection and the fairness of the trial," the motion asking Gergel to seal the items said.
Roof's defense team also is asking Gergel to exclude the sealed items from being introduced at trial under the constitutional grounds of a defendant's not having to incriminate himself and to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. Roof, 22, of Columbia, is charged with shooting and killing nine black parishioners during a Bible study in June 2015 at a downtown Charleston church.
It's unclear specifically what the defense attorneys are trying to exclude from trial.
Defense attorneys filed descriptions of the evidence they want barred. But the descriptions were filed under seal.
When Roof was arrested in North Carolina the day after the shootings, authorities seized items belonging to him, including a digital camera, according to heavily censored search warrant "returns" obtained by The State newspaper.
The edited, public version of the search warrant returns did not mention a cell phone, a common device these days. The search warrant did say that "photographs and images" were found in the camera and transferred to an evidence DVD.
To this point, neither defense attorneys nor federal authorities have mentioned videos. But "images" from the camera might include videos.
A nearly completely blacked-out report from the State Law Enforcement Division, released in November, said there were 36 items found in Roof's car. Law enforcement officials sometimes before trials black out information they deem investigative material.
Also, during a Dec. 2 hearing, federal prosecutors said they had seized a computer used by Roof.
Before the shootings, Roof, an avowed white supremacist, published on an internet site dozens of photos of him with Confederate and Nazi symbols and trappings. The images became widely known several days after the shootings, along with a Roof manifesto urging white people to commit violence against blacks.
The contents of the items now under seal could involve videos that Roof made of himself discussing plans he wrote about in his manifesto, posted online. Or they could show Roof, who made pilgrimages to Confederate shrine sites, such as a museum in Greenville, making speeches about what he intended to do.
Also, police widely circulated surveillance photos showing Roof entering and leaving Mother Emanuel AME Church in downtown Charleston on the night of shootings. The photos were taken from church surveillance cameras; it's unclear whether those cameras shot videos or still photos, so it's unclear whether a video exists of him outside the church.
The transcript Gergel made secret may reflect what Roof said during the interview, or interviews, when he allegedly confessed to law enforcement just after being arrested.
Federal prosecutors did not oppose the defense motion to seal the evidence before trial. However, they are expected to fight to have the evidence admitted during trial, either during the guilt phase or the sentencing phase, or both. Gergel has asked prosecutors to respond to the defense's request.
Roof's trial is expected to start Nov. 7 in Charleston and last through the Thanksgiving and possibly Christmas holidays.
In their motion, defense attorneys made it clear they don't want to make public even an edited version of the secret evidence.
"There is no way to redact the items or otherwise implement a less drastic alternative than sealing them pending trial in this matter," the motion said.
