The crimes Dzhokhar stands accused of could potentially carry the sentence of capital punishment. That decision is up to the Justice Department. I and my fellow signers of this petition do not believe Dzhokhar should face the death penaly.
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his brother Tamerlan acted as a self-taught jihadists. Investigation has shown no ties to international terrorist groups, but we can be sure would-be jihadists around the world, both self-proclaimed and those part of a larger organization, are watching this case.
In death, Dzhokhar is a martyr to extremists, and yet another young life extinguished where too many have already died.
"If he planted the bomb, Tsarnaev chose death. We should respond by choosing life." - Alan Dershowitz, writing for The Guardian.