New Zealand mosque shooter sentenced alive; No parole
A guy, who slaughtered 51 worshippers at two New Zealand mosques,; was sentenced Thursday to life in prison without the probability of parole, the 1st time the utmost available sentence has been imposed.
Judge Cameron Mander said the crimes committed by 29-year-old Australian Brenton Harrison Tarrant were so wicked a lifetime in jail cannot get started to atone for them.
He said that they had caused enormous loss and hurt and stemmed from a warped and malignant ideology.
“Your actions were inhuman,” Mander said. “You deliberately killed a 3-year-old infant by shooting him in the top as he clung to the leg of his father.”
The March 2019 attacks targeting persons praying at the Al Noor and Linwood mosques in Christchurch shocked New Zealand and prompted new laws banning the deadliest types of semi-automatic weapons.
In addition they prompted global changes to social media protocols following the gunman livestreamed his attack on Facebook.
During the four-day sentencing hearing, 90 survivors and family members recounted the horror of that day and the trauma they continue to feel.
Among those who spoke was Temel Atacocugu, who survived being shot nine times through the attack at the Al Noor mosque.
Atacocugu said he felt relieved at the sentence.
“Finally we can breathe freely, and we feel secure, and my kids feel secure," Atacocugu said. “The justice system has locked up this ideology forever.”
Tarrant in March pleaded guilty to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and one count of terrorism, reversing his earlier not guilty pleas.
He fired his lawyers and told the judge he didn’t wish to speak at his sentencing. A standby lawyer appointed by the court told the judge that Tarrant didn't oppose the maximum sentence.
The judge said that Tarrant recently told a psychiatrist that he now rejects his extremist views and considers his attacks “abhorrent and irrational.”
But Mander said he was skeptical Tarrant had abandoned his ideology, especially considering the gunman told police after the attacks he wished he'd killed more people. Mander said Tarrant had demonstrated no empathy toward his victims and remained detached and self-centered.
Tarrant found its way to New Zealand in 2017, never sought work, and began planning for his attack by stockpiling high-powered weapons and joining shooting clubs, the judge said.
“It appears that while travelling in Europe you developed deep-seated radical views regarding the migrant population of some Western countries,” the judge said.
Tarrant flew a drone over the Al Noor mosque and researched the layout, according to prosecutors. On the day of the attacks, he drove to the mosques with six guns, including two AR-15s.
“You committed mass murder,” the judge said. “You slaughtered unarmed and defenseless people. You maimed, wounded and crippled numerous others. Your victims are the young and the old, men, women and children.”
Dressed in a gray prison tracksuit, Tarrant showed little emotion during his four-day sentencing. He watched the speakers, occasionally giving a little nod or covering his mouth as he laughed at jokes, often made at his expense.
He was noticeably thinner than when he was initially arrested. He didn't show the brazenness he did at his first court appearance your day following the attacks, when he made a hand gesture sometimes adopted by white supremacists.
The sentencing hearing gave survivors and members of the family an opportunity to confront the gunman. As the hearing went on, the speakers became more emboldened and the numbers who signed up to speak swelled.
Some thought we would yell at the gunman and present him the finger. Others called him a monster, a coward, a rat. Some sung verses from the Quran or addressed him in Arabic. A few spoke softly to Tarrant, saying they forgave him.
“It was very empowering,” said Aya Al-Umari, who spoke about the death of her brother, Hussein. “All of us was so powerful in delivering our statements.”
Al-Umari said the hearing had shown how resilient the Muslim community in Christchurch have been in dealing with the trauma of the attacks.
“No sentence will bring our loved ones back,” she said. “But at least we are able to close this chapter and move on.”
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who was simply praised globally on her behalf empathy and leadership following the attacks, said the crime was still raw for many.
“Nothing will take the pain away but I am hoping you felt the arms of New Zealand around you through this whole process, and I am hoping you continue to believe that through all the days that follow," Ardern said.
