Dzohkhar Tsarnaev in 2010.
That may be persuasive to the presiding judge. But what's perhaps more interesting is that the poll found a sizable number of Boston residents - 42 percent - are still "unsure," indicating that even the population with the closest proximity to the April 15, 2013, act of terrorism still harbor doubts about the "official" version of events.
Without seeing the evidence the government claims to have of the younger Tsarnaev's guilt, and due to many anomalies and lingering questions about the bombing and its aftermath, we're siding with the 42 percent who just aren't sure yet.
Kevin Cullen of the Boston Globe recently expressed surprise about the poll's results in a column in which he wrote: "Call me Pollyanna, but I'm shocked they were able to find the 42 percent who don't think he's guilty." While people answering that they're unsure about Tsarnaev's guilt isn't the same as thinking he's innocent, it does reflect a substantial feeling that the jury is still out in many Bostonians' minds.
Cullen's surprise makes sense when one considers the nature of the event, with its gut-wrenching imagery and suspenseful days-long manhunt. After an experience like that, it's understandable that Bostonians would want someone to hang.
And from the beginning, law-enforcement along with the vast majority of the media have implied that the evidence against Tsarnaev is so airtight, and that his guilt is so self-evident, that it's bordering on the absurd to assert some things in the official version may not be exactly as we've been told.
Comment: Each Tamir interceptor missile costs between $40,000-$50,000 and to date there have been 260 intercepts fired two at a time (or $26M.) While Israel supporters claim the Iron Dome has saved lives, it allows Israel carte blanche to escalate the slaughter of helpless civilians barricaded in the Gaza concentration camps, outmatched and sitting targets for a ruthless and brutal enemy. Where is the Iron Dome for these people? What is the culpability of the U.S. in funding these atrocities?