Sniper suspects face death penalty
Montgomery Police Chief John Wilson said there was enough evidence to seek murder warrants against John Allen Muhammad, a 41-year-old Gulf War veteran, and his stepson John Lee Malvo, 17, for the killing of a woman at a liquor store in Montgomery on September 21.
"We are absolutely convinced we have a very strong case," Chief Wilson told a news conference in the Alabama capital. He added that the evidence against the two men included identifications from several witnesses.
Chief Wilson, however, conceded that Alabama might not get to try the two men, who were arrested on Thursday on suspicion of involvement in the sniper attacks that terrorised Washington for three weeks.
"We want to send a very strong message to not only this community and this state but the country that this is not the kind of conduct, this is not what we expect of civilised society," said Chief Wilson. "We're going to make an example of somebody." Muhammad, 41, was ordered held without bail on a federal weapons violation late on Thursday, hours after he and 17-year-old John Lee Malvo were captured at a Maryland rest stop where they had been sleeping in their car. "I think the general consensus is that the case will be tried first in Montgomery County," said Douglas Gansler, state's attorney for the Maryland jurisdiction. "We have the best evidence in the case; also the investigation was run out of Montgomery County."
But he stressed no final decision had been made. One issue in deciding who prosecutes the two may be the death penalty. The states' laws also differ on age: a 17-year-old would be eligible for the death penalty in Virginia and Alabama but not in Maryland.
Officials say a federal prosecution is unlikely because it appears there is no federal law that would make the sniper eligible for the death penalty.
In court, US District Court Magistrate Beth P. Gesner ordered Muhammad held without bail at an undisclosed location on a charge of violating a 2000 restraining order that barred him from harassing or using force against his wife and children. His next scheduled court appearance is on Tuesday.
Malvo, a Jamaican citizen, is considered a juvenile, so his federal court proceedings are closed. Malvo was being held as a material witness against Muhammad. Michael Bouchard, special agent with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms and Tobacco, said a Bushmaster rifle found in Muhammad's car had been linked by ballistics to 11 of the 14 shootings. The rifle is the civilian form of the M-16 military assault rifle. As a soldier, Muhammad received a Marksmanship Badge with expert rating the highest of three ratings in the use of the M-16, according to US Army records. Muhammad, in handcuffs and a green prison jumpsuit, spoke little during the 10-minute hearing. When Judge Gesner asked if he understood the charge, he quietly answered, "Yes, ma'am."
The motive behind the slayings still wasn't clear, and authorities didn't want to speculate. Federal officials have, however, said that Muhammad and Malvo had been known to speak sympathetically about the terrorist hijackers who attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon last year There was no indication they were linked to al-Qaida or any terrorist group, but authorities didn't rule out that the suspects may have had help.
Muhammad, a Gulf War veteran, converted to Islam several years ago and changed his last name last year from Williams. The sniper left notes claiming to be God, and warning that children were not safe "anywhere, at any time".
Thousands of children stayed home from school, and motorists avoided filling their tanks at gas stations where they might be vulnerable.
In La Plata, Maryland, the town council had voted to "strongly discourage" trick-or-treating. On Thursday it reversed course.
"I told my wife she better go out and buy some candy," Town Manager Douglas Miller said.
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