Family of Martin Richard: 'Drop the Death Penalty'

The parents of Martin Richard, the 8-year-old who was killed during the marathon bombings, say they don’t want the defendant to get the death penalty.

The couple, after sitting in court every day of the trial thus far, wrote a letter for the Boston Globe, and stated that as long as Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is in the spotlight that they “have no choice but to live a story told on his terms.”

Twenty-one-year-old Tsarnaev was found guilty on 30 counts of helping to orchestrate and carry out the blasts that killed three people and wounded another 260 people on April 15, 2013.

Bill and Denise Richard also wrote “We are in favor of and would support the Department of Justice in taking the death penalty off the table in exchange for the defendant spending the rest of his life in prison without any possibility of release and waiving all of his rights to appeal.”

The family wrote that they want to “end the anguish,” after burying their son as well as their daughter Jane Richard who lost a leg in the blasts.

U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz issued a statement on Friday morning in response to the Richard’s family plea.

“Over the past two years, I have heard from scores of survivors and victims about their feelings regarding this case,” the statement read. “Many have strong views about the best way to proceed. Those views have been heard and have played a role -- and continue to play a role -- in the Department of Justice’s handling of this case.”

The death penalty phase of the Boston Marathon trial will start on Tuesday, April 21.

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