BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) — An appeals court on Monday reversed a decision made by Western New York federal judge Lawrence Vilardo that had barred federal prosecutors from using three non-statutory aggravating factors in seeking the death penalty against Tops mass shooter Payton Gendron.
The ruling represents a major win for prosecutors seeking the death penalty against Gendron, who shot and killed 10 Black people at the Tops supermarket on Jefferson Avenue on May 14, 2022.
The ruling will allow federal prosecutors to present the three factors if the case reaches the sentencing phase…