The first week of testimony in the synagogue shooting trial drew to a close Friday after the prosecution questioned 22 witnesses.
On October 27, 2018, an armed man walked into the Tree of Life synagogue and shot and killed 11 Jewish worshipers and injured six people, including four police officers.
Robert Bowers has been charged with 63 federal counts, including 11 counts of a hate crime resulting in death. Bowers has attempted to plead guilty to the charges in exchange for a sentence of life in prison, but prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
During opening arguments, lead prosecutor Soo Song described that morning at the synagogue. She said Bowers entered and began “hunting” down Jews in their house of worship, methodically tracking congregants through the building. She detailed the victims’ fear as they hid in closets and laid on the ground to avoid gunfire. She also mentioned the acts of heroism from victims and survivors. Some called 911 and stayed on the phone while being shot at. Others ran to warn people in the building or directed them to hiding spaces.
Lead defense attorney Judy Clarke didn’t dispute Bowers’ actions that day. She acknowledged the “immeasurable” loss and devastation caused by Bowers and said the defense lawyers agreed with the prosecution on the facts of the case.
Instead, in her opening, she indicated that the defense will focus on the defendant’s “irrational motive and misguided intent.” The defense is expected to argue that Bowers wasn’t motivated by hatred for Jewish people, but rather he wanted to stop refugees he believed were terrorizing and killing people from resettling in the area. Clarke said he chose the Tree of Life Synagogue because one of the congregations supported the refugee group HIAS.
When witnesses were first called to the stand on Monday, survivors shared emotional testimony with the jury. Tree of Life congregation Rabbi Jeffrey Myers described hiding in a second-floor bathroom, holding the door closed because it had no lock. He said he thought he was going to die and began whispering a Jewish prayer for forgiveness.
“I thought about the history of my people, how we have been persecuted, hunted and slaughtered for centuries,” he told prosecutors. “And how all of them must have felt at the moments before their death.”
The next day, Carol Black shared a harrowing moment when she and two other men were hiding from the shooter in a dark closet. The shooting stopped and 87-year-old Melvin Wax opened the door. The shooter saw and shot Wax, who died.
The court also played a 911 call from Richard Gottfried, Black’s brother.
“He was frightened,” Black said.
Gottfried was killed.
Friday morning, Pittsburgh Bureau of Police officer Michael Smidga became the first witness to identify Bowers as the gunman. Smidga was one of the first officers to respond to the scene.
He described the efforts he and his partner made to get to the front door of the synagogue. He said the two were shot at through the glass and both were injured.
Smigda retreated to the corner of the building near an electric meter and away from the windows. Eventually, he was able to look through a first-floor window and saw a gunman with a rifle.
“I saw that man right there,” he told the jury, gesturing towards the defendant, Robert Bowers.
Testimony is scheduled to continue on Monday. Throughout the trial, which is expected to last two months, prosecutors are expected to tell jurors about incriminatory statements Bowers allegedly made to investigators, antisemitic statements that he allegedly made online, and evidence collected from the scene.
