Beltway Sniper Shootings-FR Commentary-Friday-Oct. 18, 2002

Fox News, CNN, Press Conferences | October 18, 2002 | Fox News, CNN, Press Conferences

[Peach]

To avoid multiple vanity threads regarding any news from press conferences, let's keep a live commentary thread going again today.

[Route66]

"Is it possible to walk that highway?
Sure, its possible. But not likely."

Well, then escape by vehicle is the most probable.

I have one more question. Based on what you know of the area and line of sight, is is possible for someone to walk from the area in the HD parking lot where the victim was shot directly to the place across the street near the school?

In other words, could the shooter have walked through his picked line of sight to go check out what the victim and witnesses could see from there and then walked back. That could be how the dogs picked up on the scent in the lot and then ran directly across the road.

[cajungirl]

Amazing story,you gotta love them pooches. I wonder if the dog knew it was baby clothes and a baby smell. You know our dogs have always been especially protective of babies, they seemed to know they were especially vulnerable.

[angkor]

because no one was looking across the street into that dark parking lot!

Assume they were in the school lot.

They take the shot, hop in the van, and drive literally 20 to 50 feet to the Rt. 50 west ramp (depends on where they were parked, but from looking at that lot I'd guess 30 feet is more likely). They're on Rt. 50 in 10 seconds.

Then they casually (inconspicuously) accelerate to 50 MPH and they are at the Seven Corners overpass and hence out of view by anyone in the mall. Let's say that's another 15 or 20 seconds.

Seems they could have been away from the scene and cruising toward the Beltway in 30 seconds or less.

I believe the Post did a chart showing the victims (aside from Montgomery County) being shot within 1,000 feet or less of a major highway (e.g., egress point). Not much room for witnesses.

[antivenom]

The thing about being in a vehicle with a rifle pulled up to your face...you are "trapped" in said vehicle...passing headlights, someone turns around in the parking lot...you are a sitting duck...plus you will have captured too much evidence INSIDE the vehicle...dogs would be alerted to the odor IF walking by said vehicle...

The guy is a RITUAL killer...his RITUAL is to survey his areas...he has planned every inch of the area...he knows that he can go to an area and "lay in wait"...he likes "stalking his prey" he likes the idea of "hunting"...hunters don't shoot from cars...they like the woods and the laying in wait...blending in with nature...

I still don't believe it is ME terrosists...and I don't believe he is shooting from his vehicle...TOO many things could go wrong...too much evidence all right there with the gun, his license plate, color and make of car...he would NOT ever allow that much DETAIL available to any witness.

He is parking his car behind a "BARRIER"...like the school across the street from Home Depot...or a natural barrier of trees or brush...IF a person were to be LUCKY enough to LOOK at the EXACT direction of the shot...he would NOT see the PERP walking back to the vehicle and would NOT see the vehicle leave the scene...THIS guy is using barriers...natural or man made...he is parking his vehicle in said spot...he gets out and may only walk 15 feet...hell maybe even 1500 feet...BUT he has the knowledge that his shot's final destination will NOT allow an eyewitness see him retreat.

Now again this is my opinion and we all know about opinions...I can say we ALL agree that this is an intersting crime and will remain so until he is killed...he will never be caught (again tee hee my opinion) LOL!!!

[swarthyguy]

Maybe we'll find out. But fair enough. Just speculative reasoning on my part, anyway.

[xsmommy]

that is precisely what i had envisioned when i heard of the shooting, before hearing any eyewitness acounts. it has always been the most likely scenario as it has the easiest ingress/egress.

[mystery-ak]

I agree with you 100%...also I might add...that noone ever knows where the first shot comes from...it takes another shot, and this shooter never fires two shots.

[md2576]

I'm not sure what to think. Kind of funny though. What a loser movie!

[angkor]

could the shooter have walked through his picked line of sight to go check out what the victim and witnesses could see from there and then walked back

Yes. Very possible. A lot of people cross Rt. 50 on foot in that area, there are apartments on the opposite side of the school.

[xsmommy]

i agree. while foot traffic ALONG route 50 is rare, crossing 50 from the apts next to the school to the shopping center, is a common occurrence.

[valleygal]

Sorry, hubby needed the computer. You're right. Waste of time. Except for saying someone confessed and was discredited. That was kind of amusing.

[Route66]

"Yes. Very possible. A lot of people cross Rt. 50 on foot in that area, there are apartments on the opposite side of the school."

Thanks very much for answering my questions. I'd like to think that if the guy did walk across to check it out, they may have him on a security camera tape somewhere, but I'll bet if he did, he was careful not to show much of himself that they could identify. Anyway, LE might yet turn up something here. Hope so.

[angkor]

me too, but i was totally diverted by the bogus witness account.

my wife and agreed it was the school lot within 15 seconds of the first mention that it was home depot. frankly, i couldn't believe it when they televised all the news vans parked in the school lot (maybe 10 or more).

"why are they parking in the middle of the crime scene"?

[xsmommy]

and the sniper was viewing that, realizing that LE had no clue.

[Vision]

An hour ago I got into my car and heard a Moose press conference where he was saying something about bowhunters. Did anyone hear that?

[Route66]

"i agree. while foot traffic ALONG route 50 is rare, crossing 50 from the apts next to the school to the shopping center, is a common occurrence."

Thanks to you as well for answering questions about the sight. Very helpful. I pray this is resolved quickly for you folks having to live in the area.

[xsmommy]

believe me, it is wierd beyond belief to be discussing my "stomping grounds" in terms of a crime scene. i used to live walking distance from this, and now only live a few miles away.

[browardchad]

I think the newsies are embarrassed by their playing up what turn out to have been false reports, and are reacting in anger.

Consider the usual motives for someone to come forward with false information: media recognition or personal gain. Those who perpetrated hoaxes after 9/11 (the woman who gained entrance to ground zero under false pretense) and the anthrax attacks (multiple hoaxes) were outed immediately, thrown to the media wolves and prosecuted. This "witness" has not identified him/herself to the media, and is thus far unknown to the media, although they've scrambled to find and interview anyone with the remotest connection to the crime scene, and finding this person would be a major scoop. Why? Why isn't the media more curious? Why is his/her culpability now being downplayed? I just watched Moose in live action, and he is now backing off his righteous indignation of yesterday about the witness. Why?

As far as the newsies' false reports -- the information from this witness was fed/leaked to the media from LE, not the witness. Chief Manger yesterday didn't deny that that the witness had made the same statements the media reported; he invalidated the statements.

I believe Moose is playing a clever game here, but why is the media buying it?

Just now, when asked (correctly, IMO) by a reporter why LE immediately took the witness at his/her word, and therefore allowed the wider crime scene to become contaminated by the media (as evidenced by the cadets combing the wider scene 3 days later), Moose responded that while LE might have been mistaken, it also illustrates that the media has to follow orders and stay back. In other words, LE didn't order the wider crime scene off limits to the media, but now it's the media's fault for contaminating it. And not one of the airheads at the press conference followed up this totally ludicrous statement. Why?

[bcoffey]

Good morning to all.

I take it all is quiet in the DC area.

Did Moose have his usual noon no-information press conference? (I didn't see it mentioned on the thread.)

[Oldeconomybuyer]

I often browse the cartoon pages and was so shocked when I saw the Hannibal/NRA cartoon that I just stared at it for a second in astonishment. Note that I'm not a member of the NRA and don't even own a gun but am an ardent 2A supporter. The "cartoonist" is a leftwing scumbag and I agree that someone should take legal action him and/or the publications that run his work. It's pathetic.