Who was John Allen Mohammed? And, where is Jarrett, Virginia?

Why does it matter?

Well, during several months back in 2002, he and a juvenile by the name of Lee Boyd Malvo killed ten people in Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia, wounding 13 others. The pair were also implicated, or "were suspected of fatal shootings in Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana and Washington state."1

Known as "The D.C. Beltway Snipers", the two had a field day in a three-week fearfest that left citizens afraid to buy gasoline, or stop at a convenience store. Mohammed, 48, was executed a few moments ago by lethal injection at the State Penitentiary in Jarrett, Virginia. Malvo, aged 17 years at the time of the convictions, will serve life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

Born John Allen Williams, Mohammed graduated High School, then entered the National Guard in Louisiana where he became a marksman with the M-16 rifle. He later converted to Islam, and changed his name. The reasons for the assaults are left mostly unknown, but there are a couple of more highly-favored versions among the many. .

One says that Williams/Mohammed wanted to raise fear enough to extort some $10 million from the United States government in order to create a training camp in the United States where young terrorists could be trained, and prepared for missions against US interests. Probable.

The other says that Williams/Mohammed was recently divorced, and was trying to scare his ex-wife into giving him parental custody of their three children. Possible.

Was he a devoted convert? Was he a shining example of what it means to be a God-fearing Muslim, epecially in America, today? Could he have been a man in search of a hero? Or, maybe he was a hero in search of an appreciative fan club. Or, was he an outraged extremist freedom-fighter who believed he could better the condition of an oppressed people? Perhaps he was just a very angry black man who wanted to hurt someone because he had been hurt. It is easy to cast aspersions, or make internet-fast judgments about someone when you do not know them.

We will, most likely, never know the actual reasons for the events that ended in October, 2002 in a Maryland rest area parking spot, where the pair were discovered by a vigilant professional trucker. What we do know is that the life of John Allen Williams/Mohammed was taken by the Virginia Department of Corrections tonight. Lethal injection was administered after a final appeal was denied by Virginia's Governor Tim Kaine.

         "I think crimes that are this horrible, you just can't understand them, you can't explain them," said Kaine, a Democrat known for carefully considering death penalty cases. "They completely dwarf your ability to look into the life of a person who would do something like this and understand why."2

Ten people, including a Virginia gas station attendant (the crime which garnered Williams/Mohammed his death sentence) were brutally, indiscriminantly killed. Some 13 others were wounded. One thing we do know is that the duo had absolutely, by their own admissions, any intent to stop their actions voluntarily. Williams/Mohammed's Attorney pled for his client's life based upon "Severe Mental Illness". Well, I would say that's a bit of a (pardon the pun) no-brainer! But, mental illness is often used as a "catch-all" for things we just cannot conceive, isn't it?

For many, random acts of violence come into that category. For others, purposeful acts of death come into that category as well. While that discussion continues, we will not be hearing from John Allen Williams/Mohammed any further on the matter. He is dead.

To ALL the victims of these heinous acts, including the lost souls who travelled to Jarrett, Virginia from Louisiana to say goodbye to a loved one, you have my sympathy and prayers. To the government who, representing all the people (including me) who sanctioned this act, you have my concern. I personally believe that the death penalty is wrong--in every case. Sorry. I know many who disagree with me on that. That's okay with me. To those who celebrate this event, and feel that democracy and America are better for it having happened, I'd love to hear your reasons. Please do not speak to me of deterrents, or righteous justification. Give me your personal feelings on the matter; i.e., how does this affect you, your life, or your family?

In His Care,

Budroe

Footnotes
1  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33827106/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/
2  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33827106/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/