Supreme Court Leaves Dylann Roof’s Judge Recusal Challenge Unreviewed

The United States Supreme Court declined to grant review of former Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof’s petition to disqualify U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel from the ongoing death-penalty proceedings. Consequently, the trial judge remains on the case and the underlying convictions and sentence are untouched.

The Hill

In May 2015, Roof, a self-identified white supremacist, opened fire during a Bible study at the historic Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina, killing nine parishioners and wounding five survivors. He was convicted of federal hate-crime and related charges and sentenced to death in 2017. Since then, Roof has repeatedly sought to overturn his conviction and obtain a new trial, including an earlier Supreme Court denial of review in 2022. The latest petition argued that Judge Gergel exhibited an “appearance of bias” after a conversation in which he allegedly expressed a desire to handle the trial.

The Hill

The Trump administration, in a brief filed with the Supreme Court, urged the high court not to intervene, contending that the Fourth Circuit’s order did not merit further review. Roof’s attorneys, in their petition, emphasized the need for “no appearance of partiality” given the case’s continued public scrutiny. The Supreme Court’s refusal to hear the case effectively endorses the appellate court’s assessment that the bias claim lacks sufficient evidentiary support.

The Hill

Roof remains incarcerated at a high-security facility in Terre Haute, Indiana, as one of three federal death-row inmates whose sentences were not commuted by the outgoing president. The decision underscores the judiciary’s reluctance to revisit post-conviction challenges absent clear procedural deficiencies, thereby maintaining the status quo of the death-penalty proceedings.

The Hill