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Relatives of victims to alleged Charleston shooter: “May God have mercy on you”

Heart-wrenching video shows relatives of victims of the fatal shooting at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, as they directly addressed alleged shooter Dylann Storm Roof during his hearing on Friday:

A television screen shows Roof, surrounded by guards, facing a camera during the hearing. Relatives and judge gathered with tears, cries, and silence as his $1 million bond was set in the separate hearing room. The New York Times wrote out a few of the relative’s remarks:

“You have killed some of the most beautiful people that I know,” said Ms. Sanders, who was in the room when the gunman opened fire, and survived by pretending she was dead. “Every fiber in my body hurts, and I’ll never be the same. Tywanza Sanders was my son, but Tywanza was my hero.”

But like the others, Ms. Sanders, her voice breaking, added, “may God have mercy on you.”

The daughter of another victim, Ethel Lance, her voice choked with sobs, said, “I will never talk to her ever again. I will never be able to hold her again.”

“But I forgive you,” the woman said. “And have mercy on your soul. You hurt me. You hurt a lot of people, but God forgive you, and I forgive you.”

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