A handful of demonstrators chanted and held signs at a courthouse in South Boston Wednesday to show support for Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
In his first public appearance arrested April 19, Tsarnaev pleaded not guilty to 30 counts including use of a weapon of mass destruction to kill.
About a dozen supporters outside Moakley Federal Courthouse cheered as the motorcade carrying the suspect arrived. They chanted “Justice for Jahar,” as Tsarnaev is known, the Associated Press reported.
One woman held a sign that read, “Free Jahar,” the AP said.
“I’m here to show Dzhokhar support, to let him know there are thousands of people worldwide that do believe his innocence,” Mary Churback told WBZ-TV.
Some of the supporters held signs conspiratorial in nature, suggesting that the marathon bombing was a false flag calculated by the federal government.
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Lacey Buckley, 23, told the station that she traveled from her home in Wenatchee, Wash., because she believes Tsarnaev is innocent.
“I just think so many of his rights were violated. They almost murdered an unarmed kid in a boat,” she said.
Dzhokhar is suspected of planting two pressure-cooker bombs at the April 15 marathon with his older brother, Tamerlan. The blasts killed three people and wounded more than 260, the AP reported. Tamerlan was killed three days later following a shootout with police, and Dzhokhar was later found hiding in a boat in someone’s backyard.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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