D.C. sniper attacks

D.C. Sniper Attacks
Locations of the fifteen sniper attacks in the D.C. area numbered chronologically
Locations of the fifteen sniper attacks in the D.C. area numbered chronologically.
LocationMaryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and Arizona, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, and Washington
DateFebruary 16, 2002 – September 26, 2002 (preliminary shootings)
October 2, 2002 – October 24, 2002 (sniper attacks)
TargetCivilians in the Washington Metropolitan Area
Attack type
Spree killing, mass murder
WeaponsBushmaster XM-15 rifle
Deaths17 (10 in sniper attacks, 7 in preliminary shootings)
Injured10 (3 in sniper attacks, 7 in preliminary shootings)
PerpetratorsJohn Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo

The D.C. Sniper Attacks (also known as the Beltway sniper attacks) were a series of coordinated shootings that occurred during three weeks in October 2002 throughout the Washington metropolitan area, consisting of the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia, and preliminary shootings, that consisted of murders and robberies in several states, and lasted for six months starting in February 2002. Seven people were killed, and seven others were injured in the preliminary shootings, and ten people were killed and three others were critically wounded in the October shootings.[1] In total, the snipers killed 17 people and wounded 10 others in a 10-month span.[2]

The snipers were John Allen Muhammad (age 41 at the time) and Lee Boyd Malvo (age 17 at the time), who traveled in a blue 1990 Chevrolet Caprice sedan.

In September 2003, Muhammad was sentenced to death, and in October, Malvo, a juvenile, was sentenced to six consecutive life sentences without parole. In November 2009, Muhammad was executed by lethal injection.

In 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated Malvo's three life sentences without parole in Virginia on appeal, with re-sentencing ordered pursuant to the Supreme Court's ruling in the case of Miller v. Alabama, 567 U.S. 460, 132 S.Ct. 2455 (2012), which held that mandatory life sentences for juvenile criminals without possibility of parole violated the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari, with oral arguments held on October 16, 2019.[3] Should he be resentenced, Malvo's minimum prison sentence will be determined by a judge; the available maximum sentence would be life imprisonment. The ruling does not apply to the six life sentences Malvo received in Maryland.[4] On February 25, 2020, after the passage of a Virginia law allowing those who are serving life sentences for offenses committed before the age of 18 to seek release after serving 20 years,[5] the U.S. Supreme Court case was dismissed at the request of lawyers on both sides.[6]

  1. ^ "Beltway Snipers". Federal Bureau of Investigation. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved January 7, 2023.
  2. ^ "Sniper reportedly details 4 new shootings". kxmb.com. AP. June 16, 2006. Archived from the original on October 13, 2007.
  3. ^ "U.S. Supreme Court Monthly Calendar, October 2019" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on October 1, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
  4. ^ Jackman, Tom (May 28, 2017). "Federal judge tosses life sentences for convicted beltway sniper Lee Boyd Malvo". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 15, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
  5. ^ Crummy, Brianna (February 24, 2020). "New Law Gives Va. Prisoners With Life Sentences the Chance at Parole". NBC4 Washington. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  6. ^ Hurley, Lawrence (February 26, 2020). "U.S. Supreme Court dismisses 'D.C. Sniper' Malvo case after change in law". Reuters. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.