Boston Still Strong

One year ago btw brought you news of a devastating bombing at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Marking the one year anniversary, record numbers of people showed up to this year’s race to participate and cheer on runners amid ramped up security.

The Race

There were 36,000 participants this year, 9,000 more than last year. Athletes with disabilities kicked off the race, followed by the elite women, elite men and then the rest of the mostly non-competative runners. The overall winner was Meb Keflezighi, a former Olympian and the first American to win the Boston Marathon since 1983. Keflezighi finished the race with a time of 2 hours 8 minutes and 37 seconds. Rita Jeptoo of Kenya won the women’s division for the second year in a row, finishing her run with a time of 2:18:57.

Security was a high priority after last year’s marathon. The Boston police put up 8,000 steel barricades, which was 1,200 more than last year. There were screening checkpoints along the 26 miles of the race route. Backpacks for the spectators were prohibited, as was clothing that covered the face. Containers with more than one liter of liquid was also prohibited. An additional 100 cameras were installed along the course to better monitor the crowd.

Honoring the Victims

Four people were killed in last year’s attack. Three died because of injuries caused by the explosion and one victim was shot by the bombers. 260 individuals were injured because of the force of the explosion. Organizers of the marathon, as well as the city of Boston, and the nation at large, honored those whose lives were affected by this tragedy.

The night before the race, the Boston Red Sox had a pre-game tribute to remember those who were killed, as well as the wounded survivors, first responders, medical workers, and law enforcement officials involved in the aftermath. On the morning of the race, Vice President Joe Biden addressed a gathered crowd of 2,500 at a convention center, saying, “We will never yield, we will never cower. We are Boston. We are America.” The marathon itself began with a moment of silence, followed by church bells and the raising of the American flag.

Follow-up on the Bomber

Less than a week after the bombing, law enforcement officials identified brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev as responsible for planting homemade pressure cooker bombs in trashcans at the finish line of the race that were detonated remotely. After a manhunt and subsequent shootout with police, eldest brother Tamerlan was killed. Dzhokhar was taken into custody and charged with 30 offenses. He remains in prison awaiting a November 2014 trial date. Tsarnaev has plead not guilty of all charges.

In January, federal prosecutors announced that they would seek the death penalty. The news has caused a great deal of controversy because the state of Massachusetts is a “non death penalty state.”  A survey of 704 Boston residents conducted by the Boston Globe found that only 33 percent of respondents supported a death sentence for Tsarnaev, while 57 percent preferred a life sentence. On the other hand, the brothers had deliberately sought to kill many innocent victims in a planned terrorist attack.

Dig Deeper Did you follow any of the coverage of this year’s Boston Marathon? If not, do some research. What acts were you particularly impressed or moved by? Why?