Prosecutors won’t seek death penalty in church shooting

NASHVILLE – A district attorney’s office in Tennessee says it won’t seek the death penalty for a man accused of fatally shooting a woman and wounding six people at a Tennessee church in September.

Nashville District Attorney General Glenn Funk’s office announced its plans Thursday to instead seek a sentence of life without parole for 26-year-old Emanuel Kidega Samson.

He faces a 43-count indictment in the Burnette Chapel Church of Christ shooting in Nashville, including first-degree murder, attempted murder and felony civil rights intimidation charges.

An arrest affidavit says Samson waived his rights and told police he arrived armed and fired at Burnette.

The prosecutor’s office says Samson could face additional sentencing for the remaining 42 counts.

The office says all other information in the case remains sealed under court order.