A federal district court judge in Virginia on Friday found the life-without-parole sentence for D.C. sniper Lee Boyd Malvo to be unconstitutional and has sent the matter to a state court appropriate re-sentencing, Fox News affiliate WTTG-TV reported.
In his 25-page ruling, Norfolk-based federal district judge Raymond A. Jackson vacated Malvo’s sentenced and remanded the case to Spotsylvania County Circuit Court for appropriate sentencing.
Judge Jackson’s case cited Supreme Court precedent that bars punishing juvenile offenders with life without the possibility of parole. Malvo was 17 when he and John Allen Muhammad terrorized the D.C. area in the fall of 2002, claiming 10 lives and wounding others before the two were captured and brought to justice.
Muhammad was executed by the Commonwealth of Virginia on Nov. 10, 2009.
• Ken Shepherd can be reached at kshepherd@washingtontimes.com.
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