Fate Of Accused Boston Marathon Bomber In The Hands Of Jury

The fate of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is in the hands of the jury that is deciding whether to convict the 21-year-old who has admitted to being the Boston Marathon bomber.

Prosecutors and lawyers for Tsarnaev painted contrasting pictures of him during closing arguments Monday. As NPR's Tovia Smith reported on Morning Edition, prosecutors cast him as a violent Islamist, bent on punishing Americans to avenge Muslims killed by U.S. troops overseas. His defense said Tsarnaev did participate in the April 15, 2013, bombing, but there would have been no attack if it weren't for his older brother, Tamerlan.

Tamerlan Tsarnaev, 26, was shot by police and run over by his brother four days later following a massive manhunt for the perpetrators of the Boston Marathon bombings, which killed three people and wounded 264 others.

Tsarnaev faces 30 charges, 17 of which carry the death penalty. His lawyer's acknowledgment of his role in the attack means the jury will almost certainly find him guilty. And, as The Associated Press adds: "After the jury reaches a verdict, the same jurors will hear additional evidence in a second phase of the trial to determine whether Tsarnaev should spend the rest of his life in prison or be executed for his crimes."

Tovia is covering the trial and is live-tweeting the proceedings. You can see those here.

You can also follow member station WBUR's live tweeting of the trial.

The AP also has a list of the jurors who are deciding Tsarnaev's fate:

"—Juror No. 35: male, works for the Massachusetts Department of Energy.

—Juror No. 41: female, works as an executive assistant for EMC Corp. in Hopkinton.

—Juror No. 83: male, student, psychology major who has put his education on hold due to financial reasons.

—Juror No. 102: female, former registered nurse, now works as a cake artist.

—Juror No. 138: male, works for Peabody Water Department.

—Juror No. 229: female, former social worker, now works as an event planner, volunteer for domestic violence hotline.

—Juror No. 286: female, works as a restaurant manager.

—Juror No. 349: female, works in clothing product development.

—Juror No. 395: female, executive assistant at a law firm.

—Juror No. 441: male, unemployed auditor.

—Juror No. 480: male, telecommunications engineer for Partners Healthcare.

—Juror No. 87, female, single mother of four children, works for local school system."