--- description: “There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that it is hate crime,” Police Chief Greg Mullen told a news conference Thursday title: Charleston Grieves After 9 Killed in Church Race Attack image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt130268d0f569c431/6988551e8e0601b4f746108c/charleston-church-shooting-6.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Witness Charleston's Grief After 9 Killed in Church Race Attack by [TIME Photo Department](/author/time-photo-department/) ## TIME Photo Department Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 18, 2015 12:13 PM CUT  Surreace Cox, of North Charleston, S.C., holds a sign during a prayer vigil down the street from the Emanuel AME Church early on June 18, 2015, following a shooting Wednesday night in Charleston, S.C. Surreace Cox, of North Charleston, S.C., holds a sign during a prayer vigil down the street from the Emanuel AME Church early on June 18, 2015, following a shooting Wednesday night in Charleston, S.C.David Goldman—AP by [TIME Photo Department](/author/time-photo-department/) ## TIME Photo Department Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 18, 2015 12:13 PM CUT [Read Next: _Everything We Know About the Charleston Shooting_](http://time.com/3926112/charleston-shooting-latest/ "undefined")  Surreace Cox, of North Charleston, S.C., holds a sign during a prayer vigil down the street from the Emanuel AME Church early on June 18, 2015, following a shooting Wednesday night in Charleston, S.C. David Goldman—AP  Charleston police officers search for a shooting suspect outside the Emanuel AME Church, in Charleston, S.C. on June 17, 2015. Matthew Fortner—The Post And Courier/AP  The steeple of Emanuel AME Church is visible as police close off a section of Calhoun Street early on June 18, 2015 following a shooting Wednesday night in Charleston, S.C. David Goldman—AP  A man kneels across the street from where police gather outside the Emanuel AME Church following a shooting in Charleston, S.C. on June 17, 2015. Wade Spees—AP  Worshippers gather to pray down the street from the Emanuel AME Church following a shooting in Charleston, S.C. on June 17, 2015. David Goldman—AP  A passing motorist looks out her window as she stops at an intersection down the street from the Emanuel AME Church early on June 18, 2015 following a shooting Wednesday night in Charleston, S.C. David Goldman—AP  An FBI agent walks across the street from the Emanuel AME Church following a shooting in Charleston, S.C. on June 17, 2015. David Goldman—AP ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3926139/charleston-church-attack/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3926139/charleston-church-attack/"},"headline":"Witness Charleston's Grief After 9 Killed in Church Race Attack","datePublished":"2015-06-18T12:13:32.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:02:58.776Z","description":"“There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that it is hate crime,” Police Chief Greg Mullen told a news conference Thursday","url":"https://time.com/3926139/charleston-church-attack/","keywords":["Crime","photography"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt130268d0f569c431/6988551e8e0601b4f746108c/charleston-church-shooting-6.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Photo Department","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-photo-department/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt130268d0f569c431/6988551e8e0601b4f746108c/charleston-church-shooting-6.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Charleston Church Shooting","caption":"Charleston Church Shooting","creditText":"David Goldman—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3926139/charleston-church-attack/","name":"Witness Charleston's Grief After 9 Killed in Church Race Attack"}}]}] ```