Pittsburgh shooting: Synagogue massacre suspect Robert Bowers must return to court on Thursday
The man accused of shooting dead 11 people inside a Pittsburgh synagogue, an incident described by prosecutors as “an horrific act of violence”, has appeared in court in a wheelchair where 29 charges were read to him aloud.
Robert Bowers, 46, who is said to have written a number of racist and antisemitic social media posts, was wheeled into the court in handcuffs and was asked if he understood the charges levelled against him.
Mr Bowers, dressed in a blue shirt, briefly had the handcuffs removed, so he could sign legal documents. The judge then read to him, the two-and-half dozen charges he faces.
Speaking from the White House just after the hearing, Press Secretary Sarah Sanders called it an "act of evil".
“This atrocity was a chilling act of mass murder, it was an act of hatred, and above all, it was an act of evil. Antisemitism is is a plague to humanity and it is responsible for many of the worst horrors in human history,” Ms Sanders said.
Ms Sanders announced that President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump will travel to Pennsylvania tomorrow to grieve with the community.
The brief hearing in a packed courtroom, came just two days after Mr Bowers allegedly entered the Tree of Life synagogue in the city’s Squirrel Tree neighbourhood, armed with three hand guns and a semi-automatic rifle.
He is accused of killing eight men and three women - aged 54 to 97 - and injuring six others, among them four police officers who shot and detained him. Prosecutors said they are treating the incident as a hate crime and have requested permission to seek the death penalty if Mr Bowers is convicted.
After the hearing, US Attorney Scott Brady told reporters prosecutors the court had ordered the suspect to appear for a preliminary hearing on Thursday in relation to the “horrific act of violence”.
"I think people are in various stages of trauma, mourning, disbelief, shock all rolled into one," Rabbi Jeffrey Myers of the Tree of Life Synagogue told ABC's Good Morning America this morning.
Jeffrey Cohen, president of Allegheny General Hospital and a member of the Tree of Life Synagogue, told ABC on Monday he went to the hospital because he wanted to see the man accused of the shootings.
"He's taken into my hospital... and the first three people who are taking care of him were Jewish," Mr Cohen said.
A Jewish doctor who heads the hospital where the suspected Pittsburgh shooter is being treated and is a member of the synagogue he allegedly attacked, said Robert Bowers “hears noise…telling him to rise up and do something”.
Robert Bowers, the alleged Pittsburg synagogue shooter, is expected to make his first federal court appearance on Friday at 1:30pm ET. It is expected that U.S. Attorney Scott Brady will give a brief statement after the appearance.
Robert Bowers faces 29 federal charges. Eleven of those charges are punishable by death. The federal charges include 11 counts of using a firearm to commit murder and several counts for two hate crimes: obstruction of exercise of religious beliefs resulting in death and obstruction of exercise of religious beliefs resulting in bodily injury to a public safety officer.
Mr Bowers is also charged with 11 state offenses, which include aggravated assault and attempted homicide.
The arraignment hearing of Robert Bowers is about to begin. The proceeding is expected to be very brief. A federal public defender is representing Mr Bowers.
Robert Bowers has been brought into the courtroom. He’s in a wheelchair after sustaining multiple gun shot wounds from the police. He is wearing a blue top and grey pants.
Five U.S. Marshals surround Robert Bowers. His hand restraints have been temporarily removed to be allowed to write during the proceeding. He is seated between his public defenders and is reviewing his documentation.
