WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Tsarnaev was convicted by a jury in May and sentenced to death. His lawyers admitted their client’s guilt but attempted during the trial to avoid the death penalty by arguing he was influenced by his older brother Tamerlan, who was killed in a police shootout after the bombing.
“A new trial is required in the interest of justice and judgements notwithstanding the verdict are required as a matter of evidentiary insufficiency,” the document stated.
Lawyers filed a “preliminary motion for a new trial” challenging multiple convictions and the death sentence for Tsarnaev’s role in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings that left three people dead and injured more than 260.
Referring to the court filing as a “placeholder,” Tsarnaev’s lawyers said they would submit an official appeal by mid-August.
