Minister Joey Spann watched Friday as 27-year-old Emanuel Kidega Samson was convicted of first-degree murder for killing one person and wounding seven others when he sprayed Spann's church and its congregants with bullets in 2017.
It was hard for Spann to recognize in Samson the same young man who taught Vacation Bible School at Burnette Chapel Church of Christ in Nashville just years before, and who would sit up front with his cousins to hear Spann preach on Sundays.
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Minister Joey Spann watched Friday as 27-year-old Emanuel Kidega Samson was convicted of first-degree murder for killing one person and wounding seven others when he sprayed Spann's church and its congregants with bullets in 2017.
Recollections of Samson as a young, eager fellow churchgoer were sprinkled throughout testimony by Spann and his multicultural congregation, who wrestled with grief and anger and struggled to forgive as they relived the shooting rampage in court this week. The impact was evident watching Spann gesture during trial testimony. One of his fingers is gone because of the shooting.
"It angered me. And knowing the guy we knew, it's been hard for the last year and a half to two years to want that boy in jail forever," Spann told reporters Friday. "But it's not hard to want this guy in jail forever."
On the day of the shooting, Melanie L. Crow of Smyrna, Tennessee, had walked out to the car to get a cough drop after the service ended. The 38-year-old mother of two was shot down in the parking lot and dropped her Bible and her notes from church. Donning a motorcycle-style clown mask, Samson followed up with a blaze of bullets inside the church.
For Armilla Bishop, Samson had been a part of her church family. Then just a few years later, the nurse found herself in a bullet-riddled house of worship rendering critical aid to minister Spann's chest wound.
Spann said he had thought the world of Samson in those days. And Samson praised everyone from the church on the witness stand, calling them receptive, kind, warm and compassionate.
Minister Joey Spann listens as Emanuel Samson testifies during his own trial Wednesday, May 22, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn. Samson is accused of fatally shooting a woman and wounding seven people at a Nashville church in 2017. Prosecutors have said they're seeking life without parole for Samson. Spann was injured during the shooting. (Shelley MaysThe Tennessean via AP, Pool)
Recollections of Samson as a young, eager fellow churchgoer were sprinkled throughout testimony by Spann and his multicultural congregation, who wrestled with grief and anger and struggled to forgive as they relived the shooting rampage in court this week. The impact was evident watching Spann gesture during trial testimony. One of his fingers is gone because of the shooting.
For Spann, the contrast became starkest when they heard recordings of Samson and his ex-girlfriend laughing on the phone about the victims and bragging about how good he looked in media coverage. In one call recorded on the jail line, Samson's ex-girlfriend ridicules Spann for telling reporters about how he told his wife he thought he was dying when he was shot and bleeding from the chest.
Spann said the congregation still hasn't heard Samson say, "I'm sorry."
Emanuel Kidega Samson sits in court as the verdict is read in his murder trial Friday, May 24, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn. Samson was found guilty of first-degree murder in a shooting at a Nashville church two years ago that left a woman dead and seven wounded. Jurors deliberated less than five hours before finding Samson guilty on all 43 counts in the indictment. (Shelley MaysThe Tennessean via AP, Pool)
"It angered me. And knowing the guy we knew, it's been hard for the last year and a half to two years to want that boy in jail forever," Spann told reporters Friday. "But it's not hard to want this guy in jail forever."
Samson, who was convicted on all 43 counts, is black and the victims are white. He left a note about a 2015 massacre at a South Carolina black church and aimed to kill at least 10 white churchgoers in revenge, prosecutors said. Jurors will consider a life sentence without parole, and could reach a decision as soon as Tuesday.
Samson testified that he didn't remember committing the crime. He said his mental health disorders have caused lapses in memory and constant shifts from feelings of ecstasy to the suicidal thoughts he said he experienced the morning of the shooting. He's on medication now in jail, and that has slowed down his thoughts, he has testified.
Burnette Chapel Church of Christ member Brenda Enderson hugs a family member of Melanie Crow, a victim in a 2017 church shooting, before the verdict is announced in the trial of Emanuel Samson on Friday, May 24, 2019. Samson was found guilty of first-degree murder in the 2017 shooting at a Nashville church that left a woman dead and seven wounded. Jurors deliberated less than five hours before finding Samson guilty on all 43 counts in the indictment. (Shelley MaysThe Tennessean via AP, Pool)
On the day of the shooting, Melanie L. Crow of Smyrna, Tennessee, had walked out to the car to get a cough drop after the service ended. The 38-year-old mother of two was shot down in the parking lot and dropped her Bible and her notes from church. Donning a motorcycle-style clown mask, Samson followed up with a blaze of bullets inside the church.
At trial, the judge limited what could be said in front of jurors about Samson's mental illnesses. Defense attorney Jennifer Lynn Thompson said the case was deemed not to meet the criteria for an insanity defense.
Before the trial, the judge largely shielded details about the case from public view. At an open hearing in April, it was revealed that a psychiatrist diagnosed Samson with "schizoaffective disorder bipolar type" and post-traumatic stress disorder after an abusive, violent upbringing, which his sister began detailing at the start of his sentencing hearing Friday.
Emanuel Kidega Samson testifies in his own defense Wednesday, May 22, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn. Samson is accused of fatally shooting a woman and wounding seven people at a Nashville church in 2017. Prosecutors have said they're seeking life without parole for Samson. (Shelley MaysThe Tennessean via AP, Pool)
For Armilla Bishop, Samson had been a part of her church family. Then just a few years later, the nurse found herself in a bullet-riddled house of worship rendering critical aid to minister Spann's chest wound.
"They've helped us push cars out of the middle of the road. We've eaten together," Bishop said of Samson and his cousins when they attended Burnette. "They've helped us do Vacation Bible School skits. They were involved, always trying to learn more and trying to grow."
"We loved them. They were sweet, sweet young men," she said.
Emanuel Kidega Samson testifies in his own defense Wednesday, May 22, 2019, in Nashville, Tenn. Samson is accused of fatally shooting a woman and wounding seven people at a Nashville church in 2017. Prosecutors have said they're seeking life without parole for Samson. (Shelley MaysThe Tennessean via AP, Pool)
Spann said there was some disagreement in the congregation over whether the death penalty should have been sought. But with life without parole now the goal, Spann said he hopes the Samson he once knew comes back — even if it's in a prison cell where he might spend the rest of his life.
"He was at an early age and I would think, through experience, that he chose the wrong path and was influenced by the wrong people," Spann said. "I wish he had been coming up that day and just come in. He was at the right place, just came for the wrong reason."
VENICE, Italy (AP) — Under the gaze of the world’s media, the fragile lagoon city of Venice launches a pilot program Thursday to charge day-trippers a 5-euro (around $5.35) entry fee that authorities hope will discourage visitors from arriving on peak days and make the city more livable for its dwindling residents.
Signs advising arriving visitors of the new requirement for a test phase of 29 days through July have been erected outside the main train station and other points of arrival.
Some 200 stewards have been trained to politely walk anyone unaware of the fee through the process of downloading a QR code. A kiosk has been set up for those not equipped with a smartphone. Once past designated entry ports, officials will carry out random checks for QR codes that show the day-tripper tax has been paid or that the bearer is exempt.
Transgressors face fines 50 euros to 300 euros. The requirement applies only for people arriving between 8:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. Outside of those hours, access is free.
“We need to find a new balance between the tourists and residents,’’ said the city’s top tourism official, Simone Venturini. “We need to safeguard the spaces of the residents, of course, and we need to discourage the arrival of day-trippers on some particular days.”
Venice has long suffered under the pressure of over-tourism, but officials say that pre-pandemic estimates ranging from 25 million to 30 million visitors a year — including day-trippers — are not reliable and that the pilot project also aims to come up with more exact figures to help better manage the phenomenon.
By contrast, registered visitors spending the night last year numbered 4.6 million, according to city figures, down 16% from pre-pandemic highs.
Venturini said the city is strained when the number of day-trippers reaches 30,000 to 40,000. Its narrow alleyways are clogged with people and water taxis packed, making it difficult for residents to go about their business.
Not all residents, however, are persuaded of the efficacy of the new system in dissuading mass tourism, and say more attention needs to be paid to boosting the resident population and services they need.
Venice last year passed a telling milestone when the number of tourist beds exceeded for the first time the number of official residents, which is now below 50,000 in the historic center with its picturesque canals.
“Putting a ticket to enter a city will not decrease not even by one single unit the number of visitors that are coming,’’ said Tommaso Cacciari, an activist who organized a protest Thursday against the measure.
“You pay a ticket to take the metro, to go to a museum, an amusement park; you don’t pay a ticket to enter a city. This is the last symbolic step of a project of an idea of this municipal administration to kick residents out of Venice,” he said.
Venturini said about 6,000 people had already paid to download the QR code, and officials expect paid day-tripper arrivals Thursday to reach some 10,000.
More than 70,000 others have downloaded a QR code denoting an exemption, including to work in Venice or as a resident of the Veneto region. People staying in hotels in Venice, including in mainland districts like Marghera or Mestre, should also get a QR code attesting to their stay, which includes a hotel tax.
The tourist official says interest in Venice's pilot program has been keen from other places suffering from mass tourism, including other Italian art cities and cities abroad such as Barcelona and Amsterdam.
Tourists take pictures at the St. Mark square in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Tourists ride on a ferry boat in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
People stand in front of an information board explaining how to pay the tourist tax in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Marco Bettini, director of Venis Informatics System, gestures as he talks to reporters at the police Venice control room, in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Venice councillor Simone Venturini speaks with reporters in front of a tourist tax totem in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Workers prepare banner explaining how to pay the tourist tax in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Marco Bettini, director of Venis Informatics System, gestures as he explains the Venice density to reporters at the police Venice control room in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Tourists arrive at the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Workers prepare the tourist tax cashier desks outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Porters wait for tourists outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Workers prepare the tourist tax cashier desks outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Workers prepare the tourist tax cashier desks outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Porters wait for tourists outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Tourists arrive outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Tourist information boards are seen outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Tourists arrive outside the main train station in Venice, Italy, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. The lagoon city of Venice begins a pilot program Thursday, April 25, 2024 to charge daytrippers a 5 euro entry fee that authorities hope will discourage tourists from arriving on peak days. Officials expect some 10,000 people will pay the fee to access the city on the first day, downloading a QR code to prove their payment. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
