Posted on 12/03/2003 12:24:25 PM PST by Holly_P
BATON ROUGE - Bringing accused sniper suspects John Allen Muhammad and John Lee Malvo back to Louisiana to be tried in the killing of a beauty supply worker will provide "insurance" that the pair will ultimately face the death penalty, a prosecutor said Tuesday.
Muhammad, 42, and Malvo, 18, were scheduled for arraignment today in Baton Rouge's 19th Judicial District Court, but both men remained in Virginia.
Muhammad was recently found guilty of murder for his role in a sniper killing there and Malvo is currently being tried.
John Sinquefield, first assistant district attorney for the 19th District, said extradition of the two accused killers will likely occur in April or May when the Malvo trial is over.
"We've been in touch with the authorities in Washington and Maryland and we have their full cooperation," Sinquefield said.
Muhammad and Malvo have been accused of killing 13 people and wounding several others in a cross-country shooting spree that raised fear in several states.
The pair was to be arraigned here for allegedly shooting Hong Im Ballenger, 45, as she left the Beauty Depot, her place of employment, Sept. 23, 2002.
State and federal officials said ballistics tests linked the bullets that killed Ballenger to the same weapon used in other sniper shootings in the D.C. area. Also, receipts found in Muhammad's automobile indicated the pair was in Baton Rouge at the time of her shooting. Sinquefield said the two men are being brought here for trial for added assurance that they will be put to death
different jurisdictions, different crimes, different victims, different trials.
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