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Charges Dismissed Against Muhammad
A Fairfax County judge has dismissed charges against convicted sniper John Allen Muhammad in a second capital murder trial related to the sniper shooting spree. In a ruling released Friday, Judge Langhorne Keith tossed out the charges, saying Fairfax prosecutors violated Muhammad's right to a speedy trial.
If they'd shot him in the back of the head when they caught him, that would have been speedy...
Muhammad was charged in the October 14, 2002 killing of Linda Franklin in Falls Church. Keith says prosecutors waited too long to bring Muhammad to trial.
How long is Franklin going to be dead?
Defense lawyers say Muhammad's trial should have begun months ago under a Virginia law that requires a suspect's trial to begin within five months of arrest, unless the defendant waives that right. But prosecutors and defense attorneys disagree on when Muhammad was technically placed under arrest.
Certain members of the public are starting to think that terrorism-related offenses should not be put into the civilian court system.

Posted by: Fred 2004-10-01
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=44782