Tsarnaev was in total found guilty on all 30 charges, including, among others, conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, resulting in death; possession and use of firearm during & in relation to crime of violence resulting in death, aiding and abetting; malicious destruction of property resulting in personal injury and death, aiding and abetting; malicious destruction of property resulting in personal injury and death, aiding and abetting.
According to WBUR’s Twitter account, Tsarnaev had his head down as the clerk read out the verdicts. The jury will weigh whether or not to recommend the death penalty, as many of the charges are capital offences.
The jury deliberated for about 11 hours starting on Tuesday morning, as the list of 30 charges was quite lengthy.
Many of the charges against Tsarnaev carried “aiding and abetting” because it is believed that his brother, Tamerlan — killed in a shootout with police — was the mastermind of the bombings and radicalized his brother. In fact, Tsarnaev’s defence attorney, Judy Clarke, told the jury at the start of the trial that her client carried out the bombings. Clarke tried to argue that Dzhokhar didn’t share the same level of culpability as Tamerlan.
The Boston Marathon bombings occurred April 15, 2013. Two pressure cooker bombs packed with shrapnel were placed near the finish line. In total, the explosions killed three people, injured 264, and resulted in lost limbs for 17 people.
A citywide manhunt ensued for the Tsarnaev brothers, and later one of the two brothers shot and killed MIT officer Sean Collier. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was eventually found hiding and was taken into custody.
The sentencing phase of the trial is expected to begin sometime next week.
