Posted on 05/25/2004 11:59:57 AM PDT by Salamander
Tuesday May 25, 2004 Van shot twice on Interstate 70 by BRIAN SHAPPELL
shappell@herald-mail.com
A van carrying a woman and three of her children was hit by gunfire twice late Sunday while westbound on Interstate 70 near Md. 65, Maryland State Police said.
(Excerpt) Read more at herald-mail.com ...
shappell@herald-mail.com
A van carrying a woman and three of her children was hit by gunfire twice late Sunday while westbound on Interstate 70 near Md. 65, Maryland State Police said.
Capt. Rob Turano, commander of the Hagerstown barrack, said police were concerned the shooting could be a copycat sniper attack, although investigators had found little evidence in the case Monday.
A state police news release, issued Monday from headquarters in Pikesville, said a van driven by a 42-year-old woman, whose name and address were not released for "security reasons," was struck by two bullets at about 10:30 p.m. Sunday. The car also was carrying the woman's 15-, 12- and 8-year-old children, police said.
Police said forensic experts determined one of the bullets entered the rear van door, passed through the rear seat where a child was laying, passed through the middle seat where another child was sitting and lodged in the driver's headrest. A second bullet entered the right rear quarter panel and lodged in insulation around a speaker, police said.
None of the van's occupants was struck by a bullet, police said.
Turano said the woman sustained a minor wound, a bump to her head when she was hit by debris.
Turano said police canvassed the area where they believed the shots were fired, although the exact location had not been identified by Monday evening.
Turano said investigators were not ruling out the possibility that someone was copying the 2002 sniper attacks to the east.
"It's always a concern when any vehicles are struck with gunfire," Turano said. "The fact of the matter is vehicles in Washington County have been struck with random gunfire in the past. It just gets more attention because of the sniper shootings."
Ten people were killed and three others were wounded during a spree in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., that began on Oct. 2, 2002. John Muhammad and John Malvo were arrested on Oct. 24, 2002, at a westbound I-70 rest area near the Washington/Frederick county line.
Juries in Virginia convicted each of the men, in separate trials, in connection with one of the shootings.
There was a series of sniper shootings in Ohio between May 2003 and late January. Twenty motorists were targeted during the period and one was fatally wounded.
State police ask that anyone with information on Sunday's shooting call 301-739-2101.
This happened 65-70 miles west of I-95, *almost* to the boonies of MD.
Unless those kids are willing to travel a good ways just to throw rocks, I don't think it's that.
It's not unheard of for stray shots to hit cars [very infrequently] during -hunting- season, but -2- shots sounds too intentional.
I don't think it was "plinking", either.
That area is right beside the city and nobody "plinks" at night, anyway.
That exit is the one to the Maryland State Correctional Facilities *and* the State Police Barracks, too.
I hope and pray it was just "nothing" and that it won't happen again.
What disturbs me is that Malvo and his "daddy" had this area on their "list".
Get away from Rt. 50 and you'll see tons. My uncle calls them "rats with antlers."
We have more deer than we know what to do with and I seriously doubt anyone would be jacklighting deer a hundred feet from a state trooper barracks....:))
Besides, urban spawl and a huge "outlet" center located right there have petty much driven the deer elsewhere, by now.
I wouldn't even hazard a guess as to whether the van was the target or merely got in the way of something else.
The "Prime Outlets" are directly across from the scene of the shooting and I'd imagine the LEOs are considering that, even if they don't mention it publicly.
On the bright side, I suppose they'll be patrolling I-70 more and that should cut down on some of the speeding....:-D
This is probably someone who wants the assault weapons ban extended.
Well, no, on second thought they shouldn't. Still, some of those gentlemen (and ladies) in the mountains know how to properly respond to this sort of thing.
I hate to admit it but that was my first thought.
[I didn't want to say anything lest the "anti-tinfoilers" attack me!]....LOL!
One of Malvo/Muhammed's next "targets" was a quickie mart off of that same exit.
I noticed they tended to stay within the "urban" [read "heavy gun law"] areas.
Where I am, guns are cracking all the time and nobody even bats an eye.
In Hagerstown, every cop they have on duty comes out for a firecracker going off.
Be who you are and say what you feel,
because those who mind don't matter
and those who matter don't mind.
---- Dr. Seuss
Gosh...I dunno...;))
Maryland Democrats are an incredibly evil subspecies and I could envision them trying to force Ehrlich, by way of "incidents" to go back on his vow to not extend the ban.
I used to believe there had to be a level to which even *they* wouldn't sink, but that was long, long ago.
After watching 6000 dead Baltimoreans rise from from their graves on a last-minute voting spree, I can't say there's anything I'd put past them.
Here is the advice that's been given us:
"And police have advice for motorists to help themselves.
Turano said, "use due-care. Be aware of your surroundings. Know where you`re going. Know where you`re stopping. Things like that."
Yup.
That'll help.
Usually I just wander endlessly and aimlessly until my truck runs out of gas and coasts to a stop.
20 Malvo's could stop this country in its tracks, Never understood why they havn't done it yet.
In Sabillasville, if you hear gunfire, you walk towards the source to see if you can help your neighbor sight in his rifle.
;))
Maybe they're waiting to see if Kerry gets in.
If he does, I'd bet it's going to get really bad, really fast.
They probably weren't buckled up and this made the state trooper mad.
"Click it or ticket", with extreme prejudice?....;)
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