RTX1KJZP
Dylann Roof (right), the 21-year-old man charged with murdering nine worshippers at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina last month, is shown being helped to his chair by chief public defender Ashley Pennington during a hearing at the Judicial Center in Charleston, July 16, 2015. Roof pleaded "not guilty" Friday to federal hate crime charges. Reuters

Dylann Roof, the suspected shooter in what authorities have said was a racially motivated June attack on a historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina, pleaded "not guilty" Friday morning to federal hate crime charges. A federal grand jury in Charleston indicted Roof on 33 counts on July 22, including multiple hate crimes, following the deaths of nine people. Roof, 21, was already facing nine counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder on the state level.

Roof's attorney, David Bruck, said his client was ready to plead guilty, but will wait to see if the government pursues the death penalty, local media reported.

Roof stands accused of shooting and killing nine African-American parishioners at the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on June 17, including state Sen. Clementa Pinckney, a pastor, after joining the group for a Bible study session that evening. Following the massacre, a manifesto was discovered online, purportedly authored by Roof and detailing numerous racist beliefs and ideologies.

RELATED STORIES
Racism