Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - The wheels of justice are slow to turn, especially when it involves the federal death penalty.
As former Erie County District Attorney John Flynn reflected on the two year
anniversary of the Tops mass shooting, he noted how the case could drag on seemingly forever.
"It could take years and years," Flynn said on WBEN Tuesday.
He added, "that is a concern that people had."
Flynn noted that there is a disconnect with a lot of the families as to whether or not they want the death penalty to go forward, on religious, moral, and practical grounds.
"They have civil suits where they're suing gun manufacturers, social media platforms, etc. But the longer this federal case goes on, the longer it delays their civil case because all of the evidence is going to be tied up in the federal case."
He said there are protective orders where the judge in the federal case is not allowing the civil attorneys to see key pieces of evidence that they need to move forward on their civil case.
Flynn explained that the federal government knew that, when making the decision, but decided from a principle standpoint, that if anyone deserved the death penalty, "it's this guy here in Buffalo" (Payton Gendron). He is currently serving a sentence of life without parole after pleading guilty to state charges that included murder and domestic terrorism motivated by hate.
