The Richard Family
The Richard Family gathered near the finish line to root on friends from their Dorchester neighborhood. They had stopped for ice cream and the kids were standing on a metal grate for a better view when Dzhokhar detonated the second bomb. Martin, 8, perished in the blast. His mom, Denise, lost an eye. His father Richard saw is flesh ripped with shrapnel. His older brother Henry was traumatized. His little sister Jane lost a leg. Prosecutors described the grave loss for the jury in the Tsarnaev trial:
“Jane was six years old when the defendant tore her leg from her body. His bomb injured her all the way up from her head, behind her ear, her back, her torso, down to her legs. Bill Richard saw her through the smoke, he smelled a vile smell. He just wanted to get it off his body. You can see her on that video we just saw trying to stand but not having a leg to stand upon. Bill grabbed her and his son Henry. And then do you remember what he told us? He saw his other son through the smoke. He saw Martin Richard. He knew he was dead. He could tell just by looking at him. The defendant had killed him. He could not bear to lose Jane as well, and so he grabbed Jane.”
