Payton Gendron: Buffalo mass shooter, 19, sentenced to life in prison for killing 10 people at supermarket
ERIE COUNTY, NEW YORK: The man who killed 10 people in a mass shooting fueled by racial hatred in Buffalo, New York Supermarket last year, was sentenced to spend his life in prison without any parole. The dramatic and tense court sentencing witnessed a victim's relative lashing out at Payton Gendron during the hearing.
Gendron, 19, a white supremacist from Conklin, New York, who was 18 at the time of the massacre, appeared in Erie County Court to receive the sentence. He pleaded guilty to all charges of multiple counts of first-degree murder including domestic terrorism motivated by hate.
READ MORE
Payton Gendron: Buffalo store shooter pleads guilty to murder of 10 people and domestic terrorism
'No second chances'
"There can be no mercy for you, no understanding, no second chances," Judge Susan Eagan said while delivering the sentence in court. "The damage you have caused is too great and the people you have hurt are too valuable to this community. You will never see the light of day as a free man ever again", she said, CBC News reported. The judge further added, "You will never see the light of day as a free man ever again".
On May 14, 2022, Payton Gendron, now 19, opened fire outside, and then inside a Tops grocery store in Buffalo. He initially pleaded not guilty to state charges as well as Federal charges brought against him several months later. During the attack, Gendron wore bullet armor and a helmet as he carried the attack using a semi-automatic rifle. The investigators discovered that the rifle was purchased legally but modified for high-capacity magazines. He even live-streamed the attack with the camera strapped on his helmet.
'We're humans'
Barbara Massey, whose sister Katherine Massey was among the 10 victims killed in the May 2022 attack, was delivering a victim impact statement when a man dressed in gray clothing lunged at Gendron. Daily Mail described him as one of the relatives of Katherine Massey, 71.
"My sister Katherine Massey was a great person. Kat didn't hurt anybody," she said, as an unidentified man in gray clothing walked up and began to stand behind her. "You are going to come to our city and decide you don't like Black people. Man, you don't know a d**n thing about Black people. We're humans," she continued.
The man then pushed her aside as he lunged at Gendron and his attorneys. "Don't do it!" a voice is heard shouting as the court erupted in chaos and police entered the fray. Fox News reported that Massey at one point said, "I want personally to choke you."
What did Gendron say in court?
A statement from Gendron was also read aloud in court toward the end of Wednesday's hearing. "I did a terrible thing that day," the statement read in part. While regretting his decision, Gendron further said, "I know I can't take it back, but I wish I could, and I don't want anyone to be inspired by me or what I did."