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The fact that the shooter didn't police up his brass marks him as either a) someone who doesn't know better -- a rank amateur; or b) a man in a big hurry -- hence, a spooked or moving amateur. No military or police-trained sniper would leave brass lying around like a business card for the Feds to find. And .223 isn't the round I'd choose for sniping at 200+ yards, either. Have they specifically ID'd the rounds as .223 rifle ammunition, or are we talking more about something like a 5.57 (M-16) round here?

My guess: this guy is an untrained but highly enthusiastic terrorist seeking -- successfully -- to create unreasoning panic among the civilian population of the national capital area.

The bad news is that this sort of random sniping is nearly impossible to predict or prevent. The good news is that a f---up like this guy will leave a calling card that will lead the Laws right to him -- sooner or later.

Here's hoping that it's sooner.