Buffalo mass shooter scheduled to appear in court for federal hate crimes case
Payton Gendron during his previous sentencing. (Derek Gee / The Buffalo News via AP, Pool, File)
BUFFALO, N.Y. — The man responsible for the racially-motivated mass shooting at the Tops supermarket in Buffalo is scheduled to appear in federal court on Tuesday morning.
Federal prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty against Payton Gendron, the White supremacist who killed 10 Black people in the mass shooting on May 14, 2022.
Gendron is already serving a sentence of life in prison without parole after he pleaded guilty to state charges. While New York State doesn’t have the death penalty, the Justice Department has the option of seeking it in a separate federal hate crimes case.
Gendron’s appearance comes after the court granted an extension for the U.S. government to file its affidavits. The federal trial is expected to begin in September of 2025.
His appearance also comes after the dedication of a new memorial at Tops to honor the victims two years after the mass shooting. Hundreds of people came to the ceremony unveiling the “5/14 Honor Space.”
According to a post that Payton Gendron made online, he also planned to target the Tops in Rochester on West Avenue, also in a majority Black community.