Tree of Life shooting

18 Stories

Synagogue Shooter Eligible for Death Penalty
Synagogue Shooter Is
Given Death Sentence
UPDATED

Synagogue Shooter Is Given Death Sentence

Robert Bowers killed 11 people in Pittsburgh in 2018, the nation's deadliest antisemitic attack

(Newser) - The gunman who stormed a synagogue in the heart of Pittsburgh's Jewish community and killed 11 worshippers will be sentenced to death for perpetrating the deadliest antisemitic attack in US history. The same federal jury that convicted 50-year-old truck driver Robert Bowers on 63 criminal counts recommended Wednesday that...

In Deadliest Antisemitic Attack in US History, a Verdict

Truck driver Robert Bowers is found guilty of killing 11 in Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue shooting

(Newser) - A truck driver who expressed hatred of Jews was convicted Friday of barging into a Pittsburgh synagogue and shooting everyone he could find, killing 11 congregants in an act of antisemitic terror for which he could be sentenced to die. The guilty verdict was a foregone conclusion after Robert Bowers'...

Trial Begins in Deadliest Antisemitic Attack in US History

Robert Bowers is on trial for the 11 deaths at the Tree of Life Synagogue

(Newser) - Prosecutors on Tuesday described how a heavily armed suspect barged into a Pittsburgh synagogue and shot every worshipper he could find in the deadliest antisemitic attack in US history, per the AP . Robert Bowers' federal trial got underway more than four years after the shooting deaths of 11 worshippers at...

Holocaust Survivor Lived Through Attack on Synagogue
Judah Samet
Survived
Bergen-Belsen,
Mass Shooting

obituary

Judah Samet Survived Bergen-Belsen, Mass Shooting

After 'Schindler's List,' he decided to tell his story

(Newser) - Judah Samet, a Holocaust survivor who narrowly escaped a shooting rampage at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018, died Tuesday. He was 84. Samet, who survived the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in World War II, was running a few minutes late for services at the Tree of Life of Life synagogue and...

At American Synagogues, a New Normal Takes Shape
At American Synagogues,
a New Normal Takes Shape
the rundown

At American Synagogues, a New Normal Takes Shape

Armed guards, traffic barriers, safety training

(Newser) - Will there be copycats? That is the "palpable fear" at synagogues around the country after the hostage-taking in Texas over the weekend, an exec with the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York tells the New York Times . Mitchell D. Silber adds a jarring observation: “More and more,...

Paper's Pulitzer Prize Money Goes to Perfect Cause

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette gives the $15K to Tree of Life synagogue, site of shooting it covered

(Newser) - The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette won't see any of the prize money from its breaking news Pulitzer , awarded for its coverage of the October shooting at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue. That's because the $15,000 will go directly to the synagogue itself, based on a suggestion by publisher...

2 Separate Massacres, 2 Acts of Kindness Out of Pittsburgh

Jewish group fundraises for NZ mosque victims after Muslims did the same for Tree of Life victims

(Newser) - When the Tree of Life synagogue shooting took place last October, killing 11, Muslims in the Pittsburgh area rallied to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the victims and their families. Now, in the wake of the massacre at two Muslim mosques in New Zealand that has taken the...

Suspect Enters Plea in Synagogue Shooting

Robert Bowers tells federal court that he is not guilty

(Newser) - A truck driver accused of killing 11 people and wounding seven during an attack on a Pittsburgh synagogue has pleaded not guilty to a new indictment that added 19 additional counts. Forty-six-year-old Robert Bowers was in federal court Monday to enter his plea, reports the AP . His attorney, Judy Clarke,...

He Yelled 'Death to All Jews.' Then a Jewish Nurse Treated Him

Ari Mahler describes the 'empathy' he decided to show a wounded Robert Bowers

(Newser) - An Allegheny General Hospital nurse who treated Robert Bowers, the man suspected of killing 11 at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, after the shooting has stepped forward via a public Facebook post , and he clarifies his identity: "I am The Jewish Nurse." His name is Ari...

Alleged Synagogue Shooter Indicted
Alleged Synagogue
Shooter Indicted

Alleged Synagogue Shooter Indicted

He faces hate crimes charges

(Newser) - The suspect in the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday, four days after 11 people were killed in the deadliest attack on Jews in American history. The indictment, which was expected, charges Robert Bowers with 44 counts, including hate crimes, the AP reports. Federal prosecutors...

Thousands Protest Trump Visit to Synagogue

First couple paid their respects to victims of worst US anti-Semitic massacre

(Newser) - President Trump and Melania Trump made a controversial visit to Pittsburgh on Tuesday to pay their respects to the 11 people killed in Saturday's synagogue mass shooting. The visit was opposed by local officials, including Democratic Mayor Bill Peduto, but not by Rabbi Jeffrey Myers, who led them inside...

Mike Pence Causes Outrage With 'Christian Rabbi'
Mike Pence Causes Outrage
With 'Christian Rabbi'
THE RUNDOWN

Mike Pence Causes Outrage With 'Christian Rabbi'

Alleged shooter appears in court in wheelchair

(Newser) - Mike Pence is taking flak for what critics say was an extremely insensitive choice of rabbi at a campaign event Monday night. The vice president invited Rabbi Loren Jacobs to the stage at the event in suburban Detroit to offer a prayer for victims of the Pittsburgh mass shooting, and...

Delayed by Just 4 Minutes, 'I Survived the Second Time'

Holocaust survivor Judah Samet describes Tree of Life synagogue shooting

(Newser) - Judah Samet arrived at Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh at 9:49am Saturday, delayed four minutes because of a conversation with his housekeeper. Those four minutes likely saved the 80-year-old's life. "If I was inside the synagogue, I would be in the line of fire," Samet...

Muslims Quickly Raise Money for Synagogue Victims

The total has surpassed $100K

(Newser) - In the immediate aftermath of the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, two Muslim nonprofit groups set out to raise $25,000 for victims on the crowdfunding site LaunchGood . They passed that goal within six hours, reports the Times of Israel . In fact, as of Monday morning, the groups CelebrateMercy and MPower...

Soros Conspiracy Theory May Be Fueling Rampages
Campbell Soup Exec Gone
After Soros Conspiracy Theory
the rundown

Campbell Soup Exec Gone After Soros Conspiracy Theory

Idea that billionaire is funding migrant caravan might be fueling rampages

(Newser) - George Soros received one of the mail bombs sent to prominent figures on the left last week, and it's not surprising he would show up on such a mailing list: He's the topic of numerous conspiracy theories from his political opponents. Now, however, one conspiracy theory in particular—...

Rabbi Had Phone on Him Because of Recent Training

Rabbi Jeffrey Myers had been advised to do so in August

(Newser) - A rabbi who helped alert authorities to the synagogue shooting that killed 11 people says it was because of recent security training that he had a cellphone on him and was able to make the call. Rabbi Jeffrey Myers of the Tree of Life in Pittsburgh said Monday on ABC'...

'Not Welcome:' Jewish Group Demands Trump Make a Move

Open letter calls on Trump to denounce white nationalism or stay out of Pittsburgh

(Newser) - President Trump denounced the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh as "pure evil" and an "assault on humanity." Not good enough, say the leaders of a Jewish group in the city: In an open letter , they demand that Trump denounce white nationalism or skip his planned trip to Pittsburgh,...

Synagogue Shooter Exploited a 'Vulnerability'

Door was unlocked on Saturdays only at Tree of Life synagogue

(Newser) - The Anti-Defamation League says the shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh is thought to be the deadliest attack specifically targeting Jews ever in the US—by far. CNN reports the previous attack to have that label occurred in 1985, when Seattle lawyer Charles Goldmark, his wife, and...

18 Stories