Boston Marathon runner glad Tsarnaev was found guilty
BARGERSVILLE, Ind. (WISH) – The guilty verdict reached in the case concerning the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing brought back painful memories for those who ran in it.
David Venable of Bargersville said it was the seventh time he ran in the race. He said the bombs went off about 15 minutes after he had crossed the finish line. He feels lucky that he and his family were two blocks away when it happened.
Now he feels glad that one of the men accused of orchestrating those tragic attacks was found guilty of the crimes.
The proof of Venable’s passion is scattered across the walls in his basement
“I’ve pretty much done marathons from California to Athens,” he said as he looked at numerous pictures and posters of races he participated in.
“I’ve completed about 40 marathons, about the same number of half marathons.”
Hanging beside them all is a banner that carries with it the pain of more than just a 26.2 mile run.
“It’s etched in my mind and memory forever as well as my families,” he said while pointing at his banner he bought at the 2013 Boston Marathon.
“Up to that point it was a normal day,” he said referencing a picture of him at the finish line. “And that day ended it’s normalcy about 15 minutes after I finished.”
That moment was when the bombs went off, killing three spectators and injuring hundreds.
“My first thought was I don’t remember a cannon, like a celebratory cannon going off. And then we heard the second and at that point we knew it was bad.”
Venable hoped that one day justice for the brutal attacks would be served.
That day came Wednesday, when Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the only suspect still alive to face trial, was found guilty of the crimes.
“When you think about his lack of remorse, the fact that he’s a terrorist, that he willingly did this, if he were found not guilty I’d be extremely surprised,” said Venable.
The next step is Tsarnaev’s sentencing. He’ll either face life in prison or the death penalty. We asked Venable which sentence he felt was appropriate.
“The best people to have answer that question would be the ones that, the family of the officer that was killed, the three people that were killed at the finish and then the nearly 200 people that were maimed,” he said. “Ask them.”
The verdict is another step in helping Venable’s family move on. He returned to Boston in 2014 and plans to continue running the race in the future. It’ll give him a chance to create new memories, the kind that don’t invoke pain.
“That’s the closest I’ve been to a terrorist act,” he said of what happened in 2013. “And the closest I ever want to be.”
We also reached out to Kristin Miller Wednesday, a five-time Boston Marathon qualifier. She ran the marathon in 2010, 2011 and 2012. She will also be running the marathon this year.
Miller has been following the updates on the Boston Marathon trial and released the following statement on the guilty verdict for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev:
“I have mixed emotions on whether or not he should receive the death penalty. I feel that the nature of his preconceived crimes warrant the death penalty but I would like to see him suffer the rest of his life in jail since there are many many people affected by his deeds that will suffer the rest of their lives. The verdict and end of the trial will bring relief to some, but it will never completely bring closure to those who were intimately involved. As a Boston marathon runner it only brings closure to not hear about the case, but the nature of that race will never be exactly the same. The best crowd and best support of the best marathon however is still strong as evidence of the running of last years Boston marathon. That incident can’t stop runners especially the town of Boston. Boston Strong!”