US Attorney General Loretta Lynch [official profile] on Wednesday announced [press release] the federal indictment of Dylann Roof, the man charged with killing nine black church members attending Emanuel AME Church [official website] in Charleston last month. Roof has been indicted on 33 charges including federal hate crimes and firearms charges for killing and attempting to kill African-Americans based on race and in an effort to interfere with the victims right to exercise their religious beliefs. Lynch also notes in the indictment that, “several months prior to the tragic events of June 17, Roof conceived of his goal of increasing racial tensions throughout the nation and seeking retribution for perceived wrongs he believed African Americans had committed against white people.” It is reported that Roof faces penalties of up to life imprisonment or the death penalty for the charges set forth in the indictment.

Dylann Roof attended a bible study session at the Charleston church on June 17. Toward of the meeting, witnesses say Roof opened fire on the group killing six women and three men, including the pastor, Reverend Clementa Pinckney, who was also a South Carolina State Senator [official profiles]. The suspect was captured [NBC report] the following day in Shelby, North Carolina, about 245 miles away from the location of the shooting. The shooting led to renewed focus on the use of the Confederate flag [UVA backgrounder], with many people across the country calling to end its use, after it was learned that Roof had posted several photos of himself with the flag. The South Carolina Senate [official website] approved a bill [JURIST report] earlier this month to remove the Confederate flag from the State House and the Capitol Complex. The bill was signed into law [JURIST report] by South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley [official website] just days later.