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Dylann Roof's Racist Request for New Counsel Denied

By William Vogeler, Esq. on September 21, 2017 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Dylann Roof, the white supremacist who murdered nine black parishioners at a South Carolina church, has not gotten any brighter in prison -- whiter, maybe.

In appealing his convictions, he sought to fire his court-appointed lawyers because they aren't white. But that was yesterday's news; the court denied his request 24 hours later.

"The court denies the motion for substitution of counsel on appeal," the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals said.

Enough Said

The appeals court ruling was brief compared to Roof's handwritten motion.

"My two currently appointed attorneys, Alexandra Yates and Apna Mirchandani, are Jewish and Indian, respectively," he wrote. "Because of my political views, which are arguably religious, it will be impossible for me to trust two attorneys that are my political and biological enemies."

His motion caused more controversy than anything.

"The one sentence response from the court was more than the request by Roof deserved," former U.S. Attorney Bill Nettles told reporters. "This young man is obviously very disturbed. His request is offensive and irrational."

Death Sentence

In January, a jury recommended death for Roof. He expressed no remorse at trial, and said earlier that he committed the murders to start a race war.

He was 21 when he shot the victims at a Bible study at the historic Emanuel AME church in Charleston. He killed nine and tried to kill three others.

Roof was convicted on 33 counts in the mass murders, June 17, 2015.

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