October 14, 2003

Justice and the Sniper

A recent immigrant to America asked me this morning why it took "so long" for the Washington Sniper case to go to trial. (The trial starts today in Virginia Beach.) Muhammad Pleads 'Not Guilty' in Sniper Trial [washingtonpost.com]. I answered that the Constitution allows criminal defendants here much greater rights than in any other country and that 12 months was quick for pre-trial proceedings in a major U.S. criminal prosecution. Still, I would like to see John Allen Muhammad fry.

This well-written piece captures the incredible paranoia and fear that were pervasive one year ago here in Washington, D.C.

Do you remember last October? The sky was that beautiful blue it gets in early fall. The leaves were changing. The air was chilly without being too cold. A great time to be outside. But you probably weren't outside much. There were no Saturday soccer games, no field trips to the pumpkin patch, no outdoor recess. Many people were worried about going to the grocery store or the gas station. All of this was because of the Washington Sniper.

To hold an entire metropolitan region hostage for 3 weeks by randomly shooting innocent passers-by, and all for mere ransom demands -- money -- is about as sociopathic as one can get. To top it off this guy brainwaished a teenager to be his trigger man.

Everyone deserves a trial. Some are just a little anti-climactic. Here's to hoping that John Allen Muhammad meets the fate he so clearly deserves.

 Posted by glenn

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