E6Hotel

No other link right now. Sorry; here's the text. Sniper Sighting Fails to Create a Clear Picture By FRANCIS X. CLINES OCKVILLE, Md., Oct. 16 — The police announced today that they had no sketch to offer the public in their hunt for the suburban sniper because witnesses who saw him kill his latest victim could not agree on details in the mayhem of the shooting scene. Investigators confirmed that more than one witness saw the latest slaying, on Monday, but they would not disclose any details other than the fact that the sniper is male. "There are a couple of people who believe they saw a man shoot," said Capt. Nancy Demme of the Montgomery County police. "Unfortunately, distance and darkness and, perhaps, adrenaline have made them unable to give us a clear composite that we can disseminate." The captain did not say, however, what partial descriptions or other new evidence investigators might be working with in their manhunt. The search by hundreds of police officers went into a third week with the Washington region fearfully anticipating that the sniper is not finished with a rampage in which he has killed nine and wounded two others in separate single-shot attacks. With a single rifle shot to the head, the sniper killed 47-year-old Linda Franklin on Monday night as she loaded her car at a shopping center in Falls Church, Va. Nearby witnesses said they saw the shooting and offered the police details about the sniper, who they said fled the scene in the same sort of light-colored van that the police have been seeking from his earlier attacks. One witness identified the weapon that the sniper shouldered, about 90 feet from Ms. Franklin, as an AK-74, a high-powered Russian-made assault rifle that can fire the type of bullets used in the slayings, the police said. They emphasized that this detail might be off somewhat because slightly different rifles, like light vans, can appear so similar in the frenzy of a crime scene. Through the day, there was a sense that the manhunt was taking a more intensive tack on the basis of fresh, substantial evidence collected but not publicly disclosed after the Monday shooting, including partial license plate data. One report was of a Maryland tag, but investigators declined to comment. As in other periods of respite in the random assaults, news reports surfaced of individuals under surveillance, but the police emphasized they had no prime suspect to talk of. A steady run of arrests continued as agents of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms pursued tips and found individuals with illegal rifles, but no prime suspect. The leaders of the local, state and federal manhunt task force were unavailable for comment as they gathered for a private strategy meeting. The elusive rifleman has baffled police in five jurisdictions across a two-state 50-mile swath of the Washington suburbs. Commanders have tightly restricted their comments to allow him no hint of their strategy. In another measure of the sniper's effects on local life, the opening of the muzzle-loading deer-hunting season was suspended by Maryland in a four-county region where the sniper has been preying. "We don't want our officers chasing false alarms of shots fired," explained Doug Duncan, the Montgomery County executive. Gov. Parris N. Glendening banned all recreational shooting except at approved firing ranges until the sniper is caught. With thousands of calls to the police logged, the captain urged residents to keep calling about suspicious neighbors and "potential suspects," people suspiciously angry or absent from work routines or involved with weapons, she explained. During the times of his repeated assaults, the sniper must so far be going unaccounted for by anyone familiar with his routine, Captain Demme said. On Monday night, one witness talked of an olive-skinned man as a possible suspect. But the police would not confirm this, emphasizing factors like the yellowish dim light at the open-air parking garage crime scene, as well as disparities with other partial descriptions. "The only common denominator thus far is male," Captain Demme said. "We don't have a refined description to go by." With residents fully expecting another shooting soon, there was wide speculation that the sniper might be pursuing a new sort of gamesmanship by letting witnesses see him standing and taking aim on Monday night in the garage. In previous shootings, the gunman has shot across greater distances from perches hidden from witnesses. His weapon can be accurate across 500 yards, say ballistics specialists who found he is using high-intensity .223-caliber bullets of the sort designed to bring down soldiers or large game on the run. As each shooting occurs without an arrest, "the concern level and the anxiety level are rising," said Mr. Duncan, chief executive in Montgomery County, where the sniper has killed six people. Public resolve to carry on with life is growing, too, Mr. Duncan insisted. The other three killings were in Virginia, to the south and west, enlarging the region's circle of fear. Federal agents say they have been receiving many tips from residents alarmed about gun-owning neighbors. "Most of these are possessed legally," said Michael Bouchard, chief agent of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, in the hunt. "However, some are possessed by people who shouldn't have them," Mr. Bouchard added, cautioning against alarmist reports when the individuals are questioned. Edit: @#$%ing double posts. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (denoir @ Oct. 17 2002,16:28)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Really, shooting unarmed civilians in an urban area does not require much skill.<span id='postcolor'> Yep. "Fish in a barrel" comes to mind. As for the AK-74 reference, one of the witnesses is adamant that's what he saw the shooter use. NYTimes Seems to me the police could verify this with the casing found near the school shooting. I'm surprised that AQ or another equally worthless group HASN'T tried to claim responsibility. In any case I'm sure that this episode will inspire them. Anyone read "Under Siege" by Stephen Coonts (no relation to the Stevie Seagal flick)? Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Mister Frag @ Oct. 17 2002,0108)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">E6Hotel, I wasn't disputing what you wrote, all I'm saying is that for a 100-yard shot, the .223 will do just fine if it hits its mark. In addition, a carbine in this caliber would make a good defensive weapon if he is detected. -- certainly better than a bolt action rifle or battle rifle in .308.<span id='postcolor'> <Jamaican voice>No worries mon.<Jamaican voice off>It's obvious when someone knows their stuff. I'm just saying that 5.56 shouldn't be considered a "sniper" rifle. It's certainly possible that this could be a terrorist operation but it doesn't seem likely to me. Terrorists could do much greater damage at less personal risk. Semper Fi

2--></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Bernadotte @ Oct. 17 2002,022)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">And who made their bulldozers? <span id='postcolor'> Bulldozers don't kill people, people kill people. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Mister Frag @ Oct. 17 2002,00:38)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">A .223 is not an inappropriate choice for hitting someone without body armor at these distances. And if he is using an assault rifle, it would also make a good tool for engaging any law enforcement officers that might respond to the sniper.<span id='postcolor'> I'm not knocking 5.56; I've sent thousands of them downrange and I know it's a good round. I also know that if I have an option and I'm going for a one-shot drop, I'm using .308 or better. Many people on here have more ballistics knowledge than I do, but on the other hand, the Marine Corps spent considerable time and money teaching me how to put a .308 round on target. Per our training, .308 is considered the minimum size needed to destroy a brain stem when a circuitry shot is called for. Of course, your mileage may vary. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (iNeo @ Oct. 16 2002,2104)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">He uses a sniper rifle and shoots people at pretty long distances, sounds like a sniper to me <!--emo& Anyway, if they say he doesn't act like a psycho, then I think too that it could be a terrorist attack  Could also be that the ones that said the guys in the van looked like they came from the middle east were lieing, you never know.<span id='postcolor'> -- A trained sniper won't choose a .223 rifle. -- His longest shots have been from about 100 yards. Child's play. If these were terrorist attacks I believe some sort of message claiming responsibility would have been delivered to the media by now. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Assault (CAN) @ Oct. 16 2002,19:20)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Give it time, a few hundred years perhaps. Or worse yet, even sooner. Â <span id='postcolor'> Nah. If we were going to take over the world we'd have done it before 1949. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (placebo @ Oct. 16 2002,19:04)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Clearly in that instance it is the fault of the movie makers who made the movies the hostage-taker watched and the game makers of the games the hostage-taker played <span id='postcolor'> D'oh! Root-cause analysis never was my bag. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Julemanden @ Oct. 16 2002,18:23)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Oh... so as long as you call it a "mistake" its okay to kill people? "But oh dear Judge, I was merely pointing the gun at him, and the thing just accidently went off" "oh... well, why are you sitting inhere then? Go out and celebrate your "mistake".<span id='postcolor'> Let me pose a hypothetical: A man has a gun to a hostage's head. After negotiating with him for oh, about a month, the police finally decide to authorize force and green-light a sniper. Unfortunately, despite his high-tech equipment, extensive training, and noble intentions, the sniper hits the hostage. Is it the sniper's fault because he's not perfect, or is the hostage-taker's fault for creating the situation in the first place? The moral of the story is that when cowardly criminals (or terrorists or whatever you want to call them) hide among non-combatants, the non-combatants occasionally die. It's not "okay," but THAT'S THE WAY IT IS. The blame should be placed at the feet of the people who create the situation. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Chill @ Oct. 16 2002,07:25)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">All Empires have their day. I see that the US has its first crack showing.<span id='postcolor'> </span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (bwenke75 @ Oct. 16 2002,16:29)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">The one thing I am worried about is who is going to be the next empire after the US?<span id='postcolor'> When exactly did we become an "empire?" Superpower, yes. Empire, no. Semper Fi

What's an Lt (NN)? Mildly curious. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Longinius @ Oct. 15 2002,18:16)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Well, we have proof that various citizens around the world are held captive by America and not given a fair trial or any treatment corresponding with the Geneva convention. Is that good enough?<span id='postcolor'> It is not, if the "highway of death" is being presented as a case where the U.S. abused prisoners. W/ Gitmo, some would argue that the "citizens" there aren't covered by the GC, but are still being treated reasonably well. If you call being blindfolded while in transit "torture," that's your business. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Chill @ Oct. 15 2002,15:50)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">So its alright to kill and torture civilans so that we can all live in a terrorist free world? <snip> 3000 AQ suspect were rounded up by the US and dissapeared in the desert. Um I wonder why the USA don't want anything to do with the International Courts? <span id='postcolor'> (1) Show me one iota of evidence that U.S. troops did this. Don't try and blame us for Afghani actions. (2) PLEASE don't (1) above and in the next sentence ask why we don't buy into the ICC. I can only process so much irony in a 24 hour period. According to the article, an old guy was tackled and his wife was frisked. Incidents like that are idiotic and make it harder to "win hearts and minds," but to compare them to killing and torturing civilians is stupid.  </span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Denoir @ Oct. 15 2002,1002)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">As we all know, USA always takes prisoners and treats them with respect  <span id='postcolor'> You know the difference between surrendering and retreating. Do you have any evidence that surrendering Iraqi soldiers were not treated in accordance with the Geneva Convention? Semper Fi

Favorite: Dolphins (love the lifestyle). Least favorite: The only animals I truly hate are insects (specifically sand fleas). Since they're not an option, I'll go with Black Widow spiders (I know they'e well-engineered and all, but man, those shiny black legs creep me out). No phobias. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (IceFire @ Oct. 11 2002,05:33)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">I found that article VERY disturbing.<span id='postcolor'> Much of that article should be taken with a grain of salt. Example #1: -- "The careful application of terror is another form of communication." -- "The only thing I feel when I kill is the recoil from my rifle." -- "Don't try to run. You'll only die tired." Yes, these are all very chilling... disturbing... terrifying... t-shirts. Holy Jeebus, this silly stuff is in every military surplus store I've ever seen (where "boots" go to buy their combat knives and other non-essential but "cool" gear <rollseyes>). Example #2: "Tarley says shooters who become obsessed with sniping are attracted to the sport's demands." Err, when the hell did sniping become a sport? Makes me wonder if the writer has confused sniping with hobbyists who enjoy harmless precision shooting. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (bn880 @ Oct. 11 2002,04)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">You want the man to die? Â Would be better to understand him than just kill him. Â The female mass murderer that was executed this week, we found out she hated humans all her life, that's why she did it(externally, we don't really understand why she was like that other than maybe abusive childhood).<span id='postcolor'> What's to understand? "Don't abuse your kids?" Well, no kidding. So we found out that she hated people -- hardly an unexpected revelation. I'd be willing to bet that this guy doesn't like people, either. To be frank, the only "understanding" this clown could provide that would interest me would come from his autopsy results. I should also clarify that I don't believe he's "insane" in the medical sense. I think he just likes to kill people because it makes him feel adequate for a little while. </span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (bn880 @ Oct. 11 2002,04)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">And it's not about what he deserves, it's about everyone else.<span id='postcolor'> Exactly. As for publishing the note, "I am God" really doesn't explain his actions, or enable the public to defend themselves in any way. There is a difference between establishing a motive and giving away details of the case that should be known only to the police. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (bn880 @ Oct. 11 2002,01)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">The reason for planting evidence may be: to make the man appear un-human, un-american, completely insane, out of this world, with no motive other than insanity.<span id='postcolor'> Y'know, his actions make this case very convincingly. I don't think the police need to worry about fabricating evidence so that he'll be seen as crazy. </span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (bn880 @ Oct. 11 2002,01)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">I have no respect for anyone who covers up the motives of killers or terrorists. Â All motives for violence agains the public should be made public. Â This = publishing messages from terrorists publically, such as a Tarot card. Â Don't you at least want to know the truth behind violence aimed at you for yourself?<span id='postcolor'> Why? Who cares about what this loser thinks, or what justification he gives? Does he really deserve to have his pathetic reasons made public? The ONLY value his words have is as clues toward his arrest, or (hopefully) his imminent death. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (bogo @ Oct. 08 2002,23:35)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">Sow you whant to split a country that has existit for thousands of years because the Israeli and palestinian issue.<span id='postcolor'> "Iraq always has been difficult to manage and govern. Hastily glued together by Britain in the 1920s to serve its imperial interests, it was placed under the Hashemite monarchy, brought from nearby Hijaz (today's Saudi Arabia), which lacked public legitimacy because of its close ties with colonial Britain and its narrow social base of support." Thousands of years (give or take thousands of years) Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (placebo @ Oct. 08 2002,23:02)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">But yes 99% (I would imagine) of serial killers have a specific MO and a specific victim type that generally doesn't change unless circumstances dictate (for example Bundy's final acts to get himself convicted in a state with capital punishment).<span id='postcolor'> "Ooopps, forgot to cancel the Penthouse subscription!" -- Ted Bundy's last words Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (placebo @ Oct. 08 2002,22:31)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">You mean intimate as in the way they kill or intimate as in they stalk and get to know their victims before killing them?<span id='postcolor'> Door number one. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe most serial killers, even Bundy, were/are motivated to carry out their power fantasies against a specific victim type. It just doesn't seem that sniping men, women, and kids would provide the same kind of "fun." But then again, a couple of John Douglas books is the extent of my knowledge on the subject, so what do I know? Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (placebo @ Oct. 08 2002,22)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">If we're going along with my comment above that these people are no different than your "common and garden" serial killer, then killers working in tandem is not all that unheard of, Bianchi and Buono, Leopold and Loeb, Hindley and Bradey, Berkowitz and his next door neighbours dog <span id='postcolor'> Granted, but I tend to associate serial killers with more (for lack of a better word) "intimate" encounters. This guy seems to be on a spree. Just saying that a lone shooter is more probable. Semper Fi

Purely as a speculative exercise... -- White male between 20 and 40 (only because most fruitcakes seem to be). -- Acting alone (the odds of one person cracking like this are low; the odds of two doing it have to be lower). -- Personal, not idealogical motivation (targets have no common denominator and if he wanted to cause "terror" in the religious/idealogical/political sense there are more effective ways). -- Not active duty military (or if he is, he's in a leave or unauthorized absence status -- these killings occurred on weekdays and we don't have that kind of free time). I'd guess unemployed or a student. -- Using CAR15 or similar weapon (was thinking bolt-action originally but his accuracy isn't that great, having delivered a couple of gutshots. Also, he's been careful about cleaning up after himself until today's recovered brass. Suggests that he couldn't find it after ejection). ... but I still don't know why he puts the mirrors in their eyes. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (bn880 @ Oct. 08 2002,21:10)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE"></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (E6Hotel @ Oct. 08 2002,15)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE"></span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Renagade @ Oct. 08 2002,20:51)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">incidently how come some shops take a dim view of selling body armour to the public as wouldn`t they need it they more becuase they dont have the fire and manpower available to them as the cops do?<span id='postcolor'> Short answer: the LAPD North Hollywood shootout back in '97. Semper Fi<span id='postcolor'> Warning: Gun control discussion is a result of this. Â <!--emo&<span id='postcolor'> I don't anticipate a problem. Â Obviously, if someone expresses interest in buying body armor, they create the impression that perhaps they're planning an activity where they anticipate being fired on. A normal (albeit paranoid) civilian who buys a vest probably wouldn't want to wear it after about five minutes, anyway. I've been in situations where they were logical necessities and I still hated wearing mine. Semper Fi

</span><table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="1"><tr><td>Quote (Renagade @ Oct. 08 2002,20:51)</td></tr><tr><td id="QUOTE">incidently how come some shops take a dim view of selling body armour to the public as wouldn`t they need it they more becuase they dont have the fire and manpower available to them as the cops do?<span id='postcolor'> Short answer: the LAPD North Hollywood shootout back in '97. Semper Fi

He may have finally screwed up -- police found a shell casing at the scene of the last shooting. NYTimes It's probably a longshot, but let's hope the moron wasn't wearing gloves when he handled the ammo. Semper Fi