New law makes D.C. sniper Malvo eligible for Virginia parole, ends Supreme Court case
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed the pending case brought by a former Bellingham High School student who was one of two people convicted for the 2002 D.C. Sniper shooting spree in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia.
Though the dismissal and a new state law in Virginia probably will not impact Lee Boyd Malvo’s lifetime prison sentence, a story by CNN.com said it will likely have a broader impact on other inmates who were convicted as juveniles.
Last fall, the Supreme Court heard arguments after a lower court ordered a new sentence for Malvo, who was 17 during the D.C. Sniper shooting spree when he and his adult partner, John Allen Muhammad, shot and killed 10 people and wounded three others over three weeks.
Muhammad was executed for his crimes in Virginia in 2009, while Malvo, who is now 34, was originally sentenced to life without parole for the crimes committed in Virginia.
Malvo’s lawyers said his sentence deserved to be reconsidered because recent Supreme Court rulings issued new guidelines in relation to juvenile offenders, CNN reported.
Virginia argued against Malvo in front of the Supreme Court, but after the state’s governor signed a bill Monday, Feb. 24, making juveniles sentenced to life in prison eligible for parole after 20 years, both sides said there was no reason to continue the Supreme Court case.
Virginia governor Ralph Northam told fox5dc.com that the old law that allowed juveniles to be sentenced for life without parole was unfair. With the new law, Malvo’s life sentence in Virginia remains in effect, but he will get a chance at parole in early 2024.
“He has counts in the state of Maryland so it would be a long time. But it’s not so much about him. It’s about the hundreds of people who are incarcerated right now and were tried as juveniles and we want them to have an opportunity for a second chance,” Northam told the TV station.
In all, Malvo was sentenced to 10 life sentences over three jurisdictions, according to USA Today.
Malvo also was prosecuted in Maryland by former state Attorney General Dog Gansler for six murders in Montgomery County.
“Six people were murdered in Montgomery County and should have their day in court, was that we were worried and concerned about what might happen in Virginia down the road. And this has happened, so even in the event that Malvo were to be paroled, he would then have to serve six life sentences in Maryland,” Gansler told fox5dc.com.
Bellingham connection
Bellingham was brought into the national spotlight during the hunt for the so-called D.C. snipers.
Investigators discovered the two drifters lived in Bellingham for a few months in 2001 and 2002, staying at the Lighthouse Mission while Malvo attended Bellingham High School. Malvo was taking college-level Advanced Placement classes.
Then-Bellingham High principal Steve Clarke testified in Malvo’s defense at his trial in 2003, to help him avoid the death penalty.
“I love the kid. He was respectful, smart, kindhearted,” Clarke told The Bellingham Herald in a 2005 interview. “It’s about as sad as it gets. It’s a life lost.”
