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Nine die in shooting at black church in Charleston, SC; white man sought for hate crime

Charleston SC shooting suspect
Charleston Police Department/NPR

Six women and three men were killed when a white man opened fire Wednesday night at Emanuel AME church in Charleston, S.C. Authorities are searching for a white man, who they said was in the church for about an hour at a prayer service before he started shooting. Full story and updates: Charleston Post and Courier

From AP: State House Minority leader Todd Rutherford told The Associated Press that the Emanuel AME Church's pastor, state Sen. Clementa Pinckney, was among those killed. Pinckney, 41, was a married father of two who was elected to the state House at age 23, making him the youngest member of the House at the time.

NPR reportsthat federal law enforcement officials and police up and down the east coast are searching for the suspect.