Community Gathers to Remember Nine Charleston Shooting Victims

Hundreds of people gathered for a prayer vigil on June 19 in South Carolina to remember the nine people who were killed earlier this week. A gunman entered Charleston’s Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on June 17, opened fire and killed nine people. Vigils have been held across the country since the shooting, especially in AME churches.

The suspect, Dylann Roof, was arraigned on June 19. He is being held without bail on nine murder charges, according to local media.

Roof is accused of walking into the church, spending time in a Bible study, before opening fire. He was arrested in Shelby, North Carolina, on June 18, after an overnight manhunt, and transported back to Charleston to face the charges. Credit: Instagram/Brenda J. Peart