BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The federal trial for the man who shot and killed 10 Black people at the Tops on Jefferson Avenue in 2022, Payton Gendron, has started.
Timeline
On May 14, 2022, Gendron drove from Conklin, New York, outside of Binghamton, to Buffalo's East Side to kill as many Black people as he possibly could.
Later that night, Gendron was first charged with state hate crimes. In 2023, he pleaded guilty to those charges, and he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
WATCH: Buffalo mass shooting gunman sentenced to life without parole on state charges
Coinciding with what's happening on the state side is what's happening on the federal side. A couple of months after the shooting, Gendron was charged with federal crimes. But in 2024, Former Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that they were seeking the death penalty for Gendron.
The question is, will he be sentenced to death? The federal government has the death penalty, so that supersedes what's happening on the state side.
WATCH: Department of Justice to seek death penalty in federal case against Buffalo mass shooting gunman
What's next?
It all starts with jury selection, which is expected to take months, likely lasting into December. Then comes the actual trial.
Guilty or innocent is just one part - the second part is the penalty phase
7 News will post live updates on what's happening in the courtroom throughout the trial here as they become available.