• Virginia set to execute 'DC sniper' tonight
    532 replies, posted
[quote]Larry King will have complete coverage of John Allen Muhammad's execution tonight at 9 ET Washington (CNN) -- John Allen Muhammad, the mastermind of the 2002 sniper attacks that terrorized the suburbs of the nation's capital, is scheduled to die by lethal injection Tuesday evening at a state prison near Jarratt, Virginia. Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine denied a clemency request from Muhammad's lawyers, closing off what is likely to be his last avenue of appeal. "Having carefully reviewed the petition for clemency and judicial opinions regarding this case, I find no compelling reason to set aside the sentence that was recommended by the jury and then imposed and affirmed by the courts," Kaine said in a statement. The Supreme Court denied Muhammad's appeal on Monday. He is all but certain to be executed at Greensville Correctional Center at 9 p.m. ET. Muhammad, 48, has chosen his final meal but has requested that it not be made public, said Larry Traylor, spokesman for the Virginia Department of Corrections. Muhammad continued to profess his innocence during two lengthy trials -- including one featuring testimony from young accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo -- and in several years of legal appeals. He repeated his assertion that he was an innocent victim of racial bias in a letter to the federal court released last week by his attorneys. Muhammad charged that police and prosecutors "lied to the American people" about his case and withheld evidence that could clear him. If Muhammad enters the death chamber without acknowledging his crimes, he will be known as the leader of one of the most enigmatic mass murder teams in history: Muhammad -- a Gulf War veteran who was described as a "gentle man" by acquaintances; and Malvo, a young Jamaican and "A" student on a desperate search for a father figure. Prosecutors say Muhammad, fueled by grudges against the Army and his ex-wife, plotted the cross-country shooting rampage, culminating in a killing spree in the Maryland and Virginia suburbs surrounding Washington, D.C.. During three weeks in October 2002, Muhammad and Malvo killed 10 people and wounded three, while taunting police with written messages and phoned-in threats and demands. It could have been much worse. During Muhammad's second trial in Maryland, Malvo testified that Muhammad originally planned to kill up to six people each day for 30 days. Indeed, after killing five people during the first 24 hours, the sniper team began the second day scouting for locations for another barrage of shootings. But, concerned about possible witnesses and the lack of escape routes, they slowed their deadly pace. Prosecutors say Muhammad intended the killings to provide a smokescreen to cover up his real goal; he hoped to kill his wife Mildred and gain custody of his three children. Defense attorneys and some supporters say Muhammad is mentally ill, and suffered post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) during his service in the first Gulf War. Defense attorneys released a scan of Muhammad's brain which they say shows signs of brain damage to both the front and rear of his brain, consistent with schizophrenia and other brain dysfunction. Though Muhammad worked with explosives in the Army, his weapon of choice for the killing spree was a Bushmaster XM-15 rifle and .223 ammunition, usually fired from close range from the trunk of an old Chevy Caprice. Muhammad cut a hole in the back of the car, and removed a wall between the trunk and the back seat, turning the car into a sniper's nest. But several of the shots were fired outside the vehicle, including the shot that wounded 13-year-old student Iran Brown, the youngest of the victims, and bus driver Conrad Johnson, 35, the last victim. The investigation was marked by a high-level of involvement from local, state and federal law enforcement. But it was also marked by missed opportunities. An early focus on white box trucks -- one was seen speeding near the scene of one shooting -- meant reports of a Chevy Caprice were ignored or discounted. Another missed opportunity came when investigators found a note in a baggie tacked to the tree of a shooting site. The note instructed police to answer a nearby phone at a certain time. But by the time police processed the baggie for fingerprints and DNA, the appointed time had passed. In notes left at shooting scenes, the snipers demanded $10 million to stop the shootings. The big break in the investigation came when an Army friend of Muhammad's called authorities to voice his suspicions. Muhammad and Malvo were captured at a Maryland rest stop, but were transferred to Virginia because of the state's aggressive use of the death penalty. Ultimately, Muhammad was convicted of capital murder and terrorism charges for killing Dean Harold Meyers, a Vietnam veteran cut down by a single bullet that hit him in the head October 9, 2002, as he filled his tank at a Manassas, Virginia, service station. Muhammad also stood trial in Maryland, and was convicted of six murders there. Malvo was tried in Virginia for the October 14, 2002 murder of FBI analyst Linda Franklin, 47, outside a Home Depot in Fairfax County, Virginia. A jury sentenced Malvo to life in prison after defense attorneys said Malvo, who was 17 at the time of the murders, was brainwashed by Muhammad. Malvo testified against Muhammad at Muhammad's Maryland trial, calling him a "coward." "You took me in your house and you made me a monster," Malvo testified. Malvo, now 24, is serving time in a Virginia prison. Malvo said the Washington killings were "phase one" of a three-phase plan. In subsequent phases, Malvo said, Muhammad planned to use $10 million to create a utopian community for homeless people in Canada, at which young people would be trained to go launch additional attacks in the United States. But whether that was Muhammad's real intent is still a matter of conjecture. Some acquaintances believe that after Muhammad recovered his children, he planned on killing the one witness who could provide the most threatening testimony against him -- Lee Boyd Malvo. CNN Supreme Court producer Bill Mears contributed to this story.[/quote] [url]http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/11/10/virginia.sniper.execution/index.html[/url] I am not sure how to react. I completely forgot about this dude years back and now this is happening. Happy that some sort of justice will be served to the victims and family members of said people. But angry that we are still doing fucking executions.
Executions are mean. I mean really, like scary mean.
About fucking time. :911:
-snip-
I had a mental image of this movie: [img]http://www.channel4.com/film/media/images/Channel4/film/P/phone_booth_xl_01--film-A.jpg[/img]
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18299978] But angry that we are still doing fucking executions.[/QUOTE] Ten people murdered for no reason at all, and you're angry at him being executed?
[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;18300055]Ten people murdered for no reason at all, and you're angry at him being executed?[/QUOTE] No, sensibility that we are still technically doing eye for a eye type of punishment. Except its do horrible thing get sent to death row and executed. It is pointless and it would be better to keep them alive until they die. Or at least the ones who know what they have done and feel horrible about it. But the whole execution thing never got through to me in the way everyone else is going at it.
Spending his entire life under constant surveillance and control in a prison > bang ur ded xD
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18299978]But angry that we are still doing fucking executions.[/QUOTE] Would you rather pay more taxes to feed the scum in the prisons or kill the ones we can and open some space? Bo fuckity woo, we killed someone who killed 10 people. I my opinion we should kill everyone who's committed murder. Hang em' out side the courthouse.
"Malvo said the Washington killings were "phase one" of a three-phase plan. In subsequent phases, Malvo said, Muhammad planned to use $10 million to create a utopian community for homeless people in Canada, at which young people would be trained to go launch additional attacks in the United States." What the fuck.
Execution? It's a hypocritical, harsh way of dealing with problems.
It's only fair isn't it? A life for a life. Lives are extremely valuable things, you know. Especially if you don't believe in anything after death. Edit: Well, actually, execution isn't even fair in this case. He should be executed [I]ten[/I] times. (But obviously you can't just do that)
[QUOTE=ChilColdCoolaid;18300118]"Malvo said the Washington killings were "phase one" of a three-phase plan. In subsequent phases, Malvo said, Muhammad planned to use $10 million to create a utopian community for homeless people in Canada, at which young people would be trained to go launch additional attacks in the United States." What the fuck.[/QUOTE] :allears:
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18300101]No, sensibility that we are still technically doing eye for a eye type of punishment. Except its do horrible thing get sent to death row and executed. It is pointless and it would be better to keep them alive until they die. Or at least the ones who know what they have done and feel horrible about it. But the whole execution thing never got through to me in the way everyone else is going at it.[/QUOTE] I'm pretty sure he stopped feeling horrible after the second person he murdered. For no reason.
[QUOTE=OvB;18300117]Would you rather pay more taxes to feed the scum in the prisons or kill the ones we can and open some space? Bo fuckity woo, we killed someone who killed 10 people. I my opinion we should kill everyone who's committed murder. Hang em' out side the courthouse.[/QUOTE] That's the other side, if we did that, well there would most likely be a revolt and possibly anarchy or civil war against the government or the police forces.
[img]http://imgkk.com/i/jZD.png[/img] Blue = Abolished for all offenses (94) Green = Abolished for all offenses except under special circumstances (10) Orange = Retains, though not used for at least 10 years (35) Red = Retains death penalty (58) I guess we can add abolition of capital punishment to the list of stuff America just doesn't fucking get. I'll just put it here right under social democracy, the metric system, gay marriage...
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18300147]That's the other side, if we did that, well there would most likely be a revolt and possibly anarchy or civil war against the government or the police forces.[/QUOTE] No, maybe a few protests, but that is about it. He deserves to die. He killed 10 people. That's not an eye for an eye. That is an eye for an eye, another eye, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another.
[QUOTE=rooky;18300121]Execution? It's a hypocritical, harsh way of dealing with problems.[/QUOTE] Harsh but effective. Even today sometimes barbaric behavior requires a barbaric response to get the message across that such behavior is unacceptable.
Why are people angry about a lunatic that killed ten people, including women and children, being put to death? You'd rather him sit in jail, and cost tax payers millions of dollars? The prison system is already over crowded, we need to put these idiots to death that go on shooting sprees rather than letting them take up space. If you're in prison with no chance of parole, you're kind of dead anyhow. Why not send them to hell where they belong.
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18300101]No, sensibility that we are still technically doing eye for a eye type of punishment. Except its do horrible thing get sent to death row and executed. It is pointless and it would be better to keep them alive until they die. Or at least the ones who know what they have done and feel horrible about it. But the whole execution thing never got through to me in the way everyone else is going at it.[/QUOTE] If he felt horrible about it, he wouldn't of done it in the first place. And I'm not going to let my taxes keep that fucker in free room and board. Besides, it can't be 'eye for an eye', he doesn't have ten eyes. /sarcasm
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18300147]That's the other side, if we did that, well there would most likely be a revolt and possibly anarchy or civil war against the government or the police forces.[/QUOTE] I would be happier and feel safer. I don't see why these people deserve to live, they made the decision now they have to deal with the consequence.
[QUOTE=Funcoot;18300162]No, maybe a few protests, but that is about it. He deserves to die. He killed 10 people. That's not an eye for an eye. That is an eye for an eye, another eye, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another, and another.[/QUOTE] Its the sensibility that I was pointing out about it.
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18300101]No, sensibility that we are still technically doing eye for a eye type of punishment. Except its do horrible thing get sent to death row and executed. It is pointless and it would be better to keep them alive until they die. Or at least the ones who know what they have done and feel horrible about it. But the whole execution thing never got through to me in the way everyone else is going at it.[/QUOTE] Eye for an eye would be more like killing members of his family instead of putting him up for execution. But what do I care.
[QUOTE=Epidemick;18300128]It's only fair isn't it? A life for a life.[/QUOTE] Not if you execute people who didn't do it, thereby permanently denying them the opportunity to be exonerated. Or if, out of people convicted of the same crimes, minorities are handed the death sentence far more frequently. Plus by your logic "fair" would involve government-mandated rapings of rapists, torture, anything. Do you really want a government with the legal leg to stand on to do this kind of shit to its own citizens?
[QUOTE=smurfy;18300150][img]http://imgkk.com/i/jZD.png[/img] Blue = Abolished for all offenses (94) Green = Abolished for all offenses except under special circumstances (10) Orange = Retains, though not used for at least 10 years (35) Red = Retains death penalty (58) I guess we can add abolition of capital punishment to the list of stuff America just doesn't fucking get. I'll just put it here right under social democracy, the metric system, gay marriage...[/QUOTE] I've said it before and I'm saying it again; The US is a [i]developing[/i] country. [QUOTE=OvB;18300177]I would be happier and feel safer. I don't see why these people deserve to live, they made the decision now they have to deal with the consequence.[/QUOTE] What right have society to decide who lives and who dies?
[QUOTE=jordguitar;18300180]Its the sensibility that I was pointing out about it.[/QUOTE] I see many good points in abolishing the death penalty. I think it should only be used in the case of brutal crimes. This being one of them.
Everybody dies, I'm sure he had a good run.
[QUOTE=TH89;18300189]Not if you execute people who didn't do it, thereby permanently denying them the opportunity to be exonerated. Or if, out of people convicted of the same crimes, minorities are handed the death sentence far more frequently. Plus by your logic "fair" would involve government-mandated rapings of rapists, torture, anything. Do you really want a government with the legal leg to stand on to do this kind of shit to its own citizens?[/QUOTE] You're seriously going to pull out the minority card this early in the thread? Could of waited a little bit more, I think.
i remember when this was happening. my school was in a code blue for like two weeks.
As much as the death penalty sucks, you can't really argue that he didn't do his best to earn it.
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