Jurors, witnesses and spectators were in tears.
On Wednesday and Thursday, survivors of the Boston marathon bombing -- and people who rushed to help them -- testified during the trial of Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, whose lawyer said he took part in the attack on April 15, 2013. Their searing testimony, some of which can be seen below, gripped the courtroom.
Thursday, March 5
Bill Richard
On the death of his son, Martin:
"I saw a little boy who had his body severely damaged by an explosion, and I just knew from what I saw that there was no chance.”
“When I saw Martin's condition I knew that he wasn't going to make it.”
“I saw my son alive, barely, for the last time.”
“He was 8 years old.”
On his 6-year-old daughter:
"I knew in my head that I needed to act quickly or we might not only lose Martin, but we might lose Jane, too.”
On suffering hearing damage:
“I can still hear you. I can hear music. And I can still hear the beautiful voices of my family.”
On the scene:
“I couldn't hear much of anything, it was deafening, it was muted chaos.”
"I knew it was a long time before I would be home. It turned out that was the case."
Officer Tom Barrett
“There were so many people that were hurt seriously that it was hard to choose who to help first."
Roseann Sdoia
On her injuries:
"Someone came running over to me and told me I had to get out of there. I told them I couldn't get up. I didn't have a leg."
"It was almost like I was starring in a horror movie, as everybody else was around me."
"I couldn't have somebody call my parents and tell them I died on Boylston St."
Officer Lauren Woods
On what she said to Lingzi Lu as Lu lay dying:
“I just kept talking to her. Lingzi, stay with us, you can do this, stay strong. I made eye contact.”
“She was vomiting profusely. I attempted to clear her airway by sticking my finger down her throat.”
Alan Hern
On his 11-year-old son Aaron, who was injured:
“Looked like something you'd see in a war movie, like he'd been hit by a hand grenade.”
“His eyebrows were singed off. On his outer left thigh was a crater about as big as my hand.”
On the blast:
“A big cloud of smoke enveloped everyone to my left. It smelled of gun powder.”
“I wasn't sure what happened or where I was. ... It felt like you were underwater.”
Jeff Bauman
On the bomber:
"He didn't look like he was having fun like everyone else."
"He was alone. He wasn't watching the race. I looked at him, and he just kind of looked down at me. I just thought it was odd."
On his thoughts after the blast, in which he lost his legs:
“You’re in Boston. Stuff like this doesn’t happen.”
“I see a guy in a cowboy hat [Carlos Arredondo], yelling at me, stick with it. The guy in the cowboy hat was like 'This kid has got to go right now.'"
“He was keeping me calm. I had hope at that point.”
Officer Frank Chiola
On the aftermath:
"You couldn’t tell who was alive or dead."
“I was a little confused at first...the area was so bloody, so chaotic...it took a moment to realize where I was.”
On the injuries to Krystle Campbell, who died:
"From the waist down, it's really tough to describe. Complete mutilation."
"Smoke was coming out of her mouth.”
Wednesday, March 4
Karen Rand McWatters
On the death of her friend Krystle Campbell:
“She very slowly said that her legs hurt. Shortly after that, her hand went limp in mine, and she never spoke again."
Rebekah Gregory DiMartino
On seeing her injured leg:
"My bones were literally laying next to me on the sidewalk and blood was everywhere."
“At that point, I thought that was the day I would die."
On finding her son:
"I remember being thrown back, hoisted into the air. My first instinct as a mother was, where in the world was my baby, where was my son?"
"I could hear Noah, I don't know how, but I could hear my little boy. She said he was saying, 'Mommy, Mommy, Mommy,' over and over again."
"I said a prayer. I said, 'God, if this is it, take me, but let me know that Noah is OK.'"
Sean O'Hara
On the victims streaming into his store, Marathon Sports:
"I heard a voice of someone saying, 'Stay with me. Stay with me.'"