PORTLAND — A jury has ruled that Jeremy Christian callously disregarded the lives of the three men he stabbed on a Portland light rail train, was fueled by racist and religious bigotry, poses a future danger and can’t be rehabilitated.
The 12-person jury on Thursday also agreed with a prosecution argument that Christian showed no remorse for his victims, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported. Defense attorneys had disagreed — highlighting Christian’s statements that he felt bad about the death of one victim because the man’s children would grow up without a father. Presumably, Christian was talking about Ricky Best, a father of four.
Jurors found Christian guilty last week of 12 crimes, including first-degree murder for the deaths of Taliesin Namkai-Meche and Best, attempted first-degree murder for the serious injury of Micah Fletcher and hate crimes against two teenage girls, one who was wearing a hijab, on a crowded train as it pulled into the Hollywood Transit Center in northeast Portland on May 26, 2017.
No sentencing date has been scheduled yet. Multnomah County Circuit Judge Cheryl Albrecht could use the jury’s findings to help determine Christian’s sentence.
Oregon’s new first-degree murder law, which took effect Sept. 29, empowers the judge with two sentencing options: life in prison with a 30-year minimum and what’s known as “true life,” which is life in prison with no possibility of release.