Charleston Shooting Victims Identified: Killed Include State Senator, 87-Year-Old Church Member

The victims of the Charleston church shooting have been identified, with the nine killed in Wednesday’s massacre including a state Senator and an 87-year-old long-time church member.

The shooting took place Wednesday evening, with police saying Dylann Storm Roof entered the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, sat in a prayer meeting for roughly an hour, and then opened fire.

Nine people were killed, and on Thursday afternoon, police released the identities of the victims.

From the Associated Press, the list of names as follows.

• Cynthia Hurd, 54, a manager with the Charleston County Public Library system.
• Ethel Lance, 70, a retiree who recently worked as a church janitor
• Rev. Clementa Pinckney, 41, a South Carolina state senator and pastor at the church
• Susie Jackson, 87, a longtime member of the church
• Depayne Middleton Doctor, 49, former Charleston County community development director
• Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45, a church pastor, speech therapist and a high school girls’ track coach
• Myra Thompson, 59, a pastor at the church
• Rev. Daniel Simmons, Sr., 74, another pastor at the church
• Tywanza Sanders, 26, a 2014 graduate of Allen University, where Pinckney was also an alum

All of the victims were killed by gunshot wounds, said Charleston County Coroner Rae Wooten.

After a search that spanned Wednesday night and into Thursday, police located suspect Dylann Storm Roof, who was captured at a traffic stop in Shelby, North Carolina.

“I can confirm that there is a subject in custody in relation to the shootings in Charleston from last evening,” U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch said today at a news conference. “And, of course, this moves us into a different phase of the investigation, which will be pursued as vigorously and with as complete cooperation as the apprehension of this individual.”

But attention turned Thursday to the victims of the Charleston church shooting. Pinckney was remembered as a promising politician with a close connection to his community. He became a preacher at 13 and was appointed pastor at 18.

After graduating from Allen University, he went into politics, being elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives at age 23.

Many from across the political aisle remembered Pinckney on Thursday.