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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060526/ap_on_re_us/sniper_trial_31;_ylt=ArlqKMIsoO4KYyo09C4BSikThAQi
By STEPHEN MANNING, Associated Press Writer
2 hours, 54 minutes ago
ROCKVILLE, Md. - John Allen Muhammad closed his defense Friday, opting not to testify after calling just a handful of witnesses in his trial for six Maryland sniper shootings.
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Muhammad, who is defending himself, indicated during jury selection that he might take the stand. But when the judge asked him Friday whether he would, he stated, "Muhammad has no intention of testifying."
Judge James Ryan scheduled jury instructions and closing arguments for Friday afternoon, capping four weeks of testimony in Muhammad's second trial for the 2002 sniper spree in the Washington region. He already was convicted of a Virginia shooting and sentenced to death.
Muhammad originally wanted to call hundreds of witnesses, but was limited to just a handful after he missed deadlines and failed to follow proper procedure for issuing subpoenas. Several people who were subpoenaed refused to show up at court because they didn't want to be part of Muhammad's defense.
Muhammad, 45, did not try to counter testimony earlier this week from his accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo.
Malvo, 21, agreed to plead guilty to the same six Maryland murders this week and gave a detailed, inside account of the planning and execution of the October 2002 shootings.
He said Muhammad devised the scheme to terrorize the region, and planned even more killings. Glaring at the man he had considered a father figure, Malvo said: "You took me into your house and you made me a monster."
Muhammad called only one witness Friday morning, a man who saw a person around a white box truck across the street from the gas station where Premkumar Walekar was killed Oct. 3, 2002. At the time, authorities thought the shooter was driving that type of vehicle. But Steve Olson testified that the truck didn't depart from the scene after he heard the shot.
Ryan on Friday blocked Muhammad from calling Clyde Wilson, a witness to a September 2002 shooting of two Montgomery, Ala., liquor store employees, which Malvo attributed to Muhammad. Muhammad said Wilson chased a man from the scene and later told authorities he didn't match a photo of Malvo.
"The state has said that this community has been victims," Muhammad pleaded to Ryan. "It is even a greater tragedy that this community cannot hear what actually happened."
But Ryan denied the motion, agreeing with prosecutors that the witness was brought up too late in the trial to give prosecutors a chance to prepare.
Outside the courtroom, Wilson, who flew up from Atlanta to testify, said he was disappointed he hadn't been able to. "I don't think it's right," he said. "It seems like someone is trying to obfuscate the truth here."
As Muhammad mounted his short defense, many other witnesses he hoped to call chose to ignore his subpoenas, according to an attorney helping Muhammad with the case.
"I've been threatened, I've been chased off people's property, I've had people's subpoenas balled up and thrown away right in front of me," said J. Wyndal Gordon.
Ryan said he appreciated Gordon's work on witnesses but didn't take any action to compel the reluctant witnesses to appear.
By STEPHEN MANNING, Associated Press Writer
2 hours, 54 minutes ago
ROCKVILLE, Md. - John Allen Muhammad closed his defense Friday, opting not to testify after calling just a handful of witnesses in his trial for six Maryland sniper shootings.
ADVERTISEMENT
Muhammad, who is defending himself, indicated during jury selection that he might take the stand. But when the judge asked him Friday whether he would, he stated, "Muhammad has no intention of testifying."
Judge James Ryan scheduled jury instructions and closing arguments for Friday afternoon, capping four weeks of testimony in Muhammad's second trial for the 2002 sniper spree in the Washington region. He already was convicted of a Virginia shooting and sentenced to death.
Muhammad originally wanted to call hundreds of witnesses, but was limited to just a handful after he missed deadlines and failed to follow proper procedure for issuing subpoenas. Several people who were subpoenaed refused to show up at court because they didn't want to be part of Muhammad's defense.
Muhammad, 45, did not try to counter testimony earlier this week from his accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo.
Malvo, 21, agreed to plead guilty to the same six Maryland murders this week and gave a detailed, inside account of the planning and execution of the October 2002 shootings.
He said Muhammad devised the scheme to terrorize the region, and planned even more killings. Glaring at the man he had considered a father figure, Malvo said: "You took me into your house and you made me a monster."
Muhammad called only one witness Friday morning, a man who saw a person around a white box truck across the street from the gas station where Premkumar Walekar was killed Oct. 3, 2002. At the time, authorities thought the shooter was driving that type of vehicle. But Steve Olson testified that the truck didn't depart from the scene after he heard the shot.
Ryan on Friday blocked Muhammad from calling Clyde Wilson, a witness to a September 2002 shooting of two Montgomery, Ala., liquor store employees, which Malvo attributed to Muhammad. Muhammad said Wilson chased a man from the scene and later told authorities he didn't match a photo of Malvo.
"The state has said that this community has been victims," Muhammad pleaded to Ryan. "It is even a greater tragedy that this community cannot hear what actually happened."
But Ryan denied the motion, agreeing with prosecutors that the witness was brought up too late in the trial to give prosecutors a chance to prepare.
Outside the courtroom, Wilson, who flew up from Atlanta to testify, said he was disappointed he hadn't been able to. "I don't think it's right," he said. "It seems like someone is trying to obfuscate the truth here."
As Muhammad mounted his short defense, many other witnesses he hoped to call chose to ignore his subpoenas, according to an attorney helping Muhammad with the case.
"I've been threatened, I've been chased off people's property, I've had people's subpoenas balled up and thrown away right in front of me," said J. Wyndal Gordon.
Ryan said he appreciated Gordon's work on witnesses but didn't take any action to compel the reluctant witnesses to appear.
