Clementa Pinckney: Hundreds mourn Charleston pastor
- Published
Despite intense heat, crowds gathered to honour Clementa Pinckney
The body of South Carolina State Senator Clementa Pinckney has been taken to the rotunda lobby of the state's capitol to lie in repose for public viewing.
Pinckney also served as the pastor of Emanuel AME Church, where he was shot and killed with eight others last week.
Hundreds of mourners queued to pay their respects, and were being greeted by his widow and two daughters.
President Barack Obama will deliver a eulogy at his funeral on Friday.
A man, Dylann Roof, has been arrested and charged in connection with the attack, which police believe was racially motivated.
A confederate flag, the subject of nationwide controversy, continued to fly as his casket arrived at the statehouse by horse-drawn carriage
A South Carolina Highway Patrol honour guard carried Pinckney's casket into the statehouse
Hundreds have been queuing to pay their respects even as temperatures were expected to rise to 33C (91.4F)
More public viewings are scheduled and Pinckney's funeral, which President Obama will attend, is on Friday