Dzhokhar Tsarnaev
Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his brother Tamerlan bombed the 2013 Boston Marathon, killing three people, including 8-year-old Martin Richard, and injuring hundreds. Their subsequent crimes included the killing of MIT police officer Sean Collier.
At a glance
- What happened
- The brothers placed and detonated two bombs among spectators near the marathon finish line. The people killed were Krystle Campbell, 29; Lingzi Lu, 23; and Martin Richard, 8. The bombs caused severe injuries to many others. Three days later, the brothers killed Sean Collier, carjacked a vehicle, and fought police before Dzhokhar was captured.
- When
- April 15, 2013: bombing. April 19, 2013: capture. April 8, 2015: conviction on 30 counts. June 2015: sentence. March 4, 2022: Supreme Court reinstated death sentence. July 2025: further appellate proceedings reported.
- Where
- Boston, Cambridge, and Watertown, Massachusetts.
- Why / motive
- At sentencing, the defense argued that Tamerlan played the leading role and influenced Dzhokhar. That was a defense argument, not a finding excusing his responsibility.
- Outcome
- Tsarnaev received a death sentence and multiple life sentences. The Supreme Court reinstated the death sentence in 2022 after an earlier reversal. AP reported continuing litigation in July 2025; this record does not claim all appeals are exhausted.
Who is involved
- Dzhokhar Tsarnaev — subject
Sources
- U.S. Supreme Court — United States v. Tsarnaev (2022)“his older brother Tamerlan took the leading role and induced Dzhokhar’s participation in the bombings.”
- AP — Tsarnaev appellate litigation, July 31, 2025“the protracted legal battle over his death sentence.”
- U.S. Department of Justice — Boston bombing victims and ages“Martin Richard, an 8-year-old boy from Dorchester who was watching the marathon with his family”
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