- Title: USA: Execution is set to take place for beltway sniper John Allen Muhammed
- Date: 12th November 2009
- Summary: JARRATT, VIRGINIA, UNITED STATES (NOVEMBER 10, 2009) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF GREENSVILLE CORRECTIONAL CENTRE SIGN OF GREENSVILLE CORRECTIONAL CENTER WHERE JOHN ALLEN MUHAMMAD IS HELD UNTIL HIS EXECUTION GUARD TOWER SECURITY GUARD AMBULANCE DRIVING IN WIDE OF LARRY TRAYLOR, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, SPEAKING TO PRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) LARRY TRAYLOR, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS SAYING: "He is in a cell adjacent to - right next to the door that goes into the execution chamber. So he is steps away from the lethal injection gurney yes." REPORTERS TAKING NOTES (SOUNDBITE) (English) LARRY TRAYLOR, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS SAYING: "The warden will read the court order aloud. Once that is completed, the cell door will be opened. Officers will open the cell door and at that point probably put some handcuffs on him and also something on his ankles. He'll have denim jeans on, a denim shirt, short sleeve shirt, and something very similar to flip flops that he will be wearing. Once he is under control and restrained, he'll be escorted by those officers into the chamber. One on each side and several others in case they are needed." MORE GUARDS
- Embargoed: 27th November 2009 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Usa
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA9YFNAPIQQL3F7DJK9HQKYAPV9
- Story Text: The US Supreme Court refused to stand in the way of John Allen Muhammad's planned execution by lethal injection inside a Virginia prison for the slaying of Dean Harold Meyers.
Muhammad, 48, and his teenage accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo were behind a series of attacks seven years ago that left 10 dead in and around the Washington DC area.
The convicted murderer will be executed at 9pm local time (2am Wednesday, GMT). Larry Traylor, from the Virginia Department of Corrections, said that Muhammad had requested his last meal but asked that it not be disclosed. He said Muhammad also did not ask for a spiritual leader in his final moments and that Muhammad had two separate visits with family members on Tuesday but would not disclose who.
"He is in a cell adjacent to - right next to the door that goes into the execution chamber. So he is steps away from the lethal injection gurney," Traylor added.
Muhammad's reign of terror lasted from October 2 to October 24 in 2002.
During that time he and Malvo, then 17, taunted police as they shot people at random from their car.
In all some 16 people were hit by the snipers' bullets across Maryland, Virginia and Washington DC. Ten people were killed as a result.
Within a 27-hour period at the beginning of the killing spree, six people were murdered by Muhammad and Malvo.
The pair are also suspected of being behind a series of fatal shootings in other states including Louisiana, Alabama and Arizona.
Malvo is serving a life sentence in prison for his part in the murders.
Muhammad and Malvo's victims included a 13-year-old schoolboy who survived the attack and a 72-year-old who was gunned down while attempting to cross the road.
Muhammad, believed to be the mastermind behind the killings, was convicted in Virginia in 2003 of four counts including the murder of Mr Meyers. A jury recommended the death penalty with the sentenced confirmed in a Virginian court two years later.
Further convictions over the snipers' murders occurred in Maryland in 2005.
The Supreme Court made no comment after announcing that it had refused Muhammad's appeal.
After the decision was made, his attorney Jonathan Sheldon said that Virginia will execute a "severely mentally ill man" who also suffered from Gulf War Syndrome the day before Veterans Day. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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