<sh>Insulting to Victims?
<bt>Defense attorneys for sniper defendant Lee Boyd Malvo have asked that his trial be moved from Fairfax County. They claim that all citizens of Fairfax County are victims under the terrorist statute, and that an unbiased jury pool won't be found.
Commonwealth's Attorney Robert F. Horan called the claim preposterous. "It raises the notion of 'victimhood' to a totally new dimension, a dimension where one is a victim whether he or she knows it or not," wrote Horan. He called the claim insulting to the actual victims of the sniper attacks.
Horan will argue that Malvo attempted to extort $10 million from the government and police in order to stop the sniper attacks that left 10 dead and three injured in the Washington area last October. Arlington resident Linda Franklin was murdered on Oct. 14, 2002, outside a Home Depot in Falls Church.
The Commonwealth's Office is prosecuting Malvo under the state terrorism statute. According to that statute, Virginia Code 18.2-46.4, an act of terrorism is a crime intended to "intimidate the civilian population at large" or "influence the conduct or activities of the government of the United States, a state or locality through intimidation."
Judge Jane Marum Roush is scheduled to hear arguments on the motion this Monday, June 2.
<sh>Taste of Fairfax
<bt>The Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce will sponsor the second annual Savoring the Taste of Fairfax on Monday, June 2, 5-8 p.m., at Williams Memorial Fire Hall (Fire Station No. 3), 4081 University Drive, Fairfax. More than two dozen local eateries are expected to showcase their culinary talents for Fairfax and the surrounding communities. Admission is $5 per person to purchase six tickets. All proceeds will go to the Margaret Kilpatrick Adams Memorial Scholarship Fund to help local youths finance their college education. For more information, call the Chamber at 703-591-2450.
<sh>City Thanks Volunteers, Civic Associations
<bt>The City of Fairfax mayor and City Council recently presented the following volunteers with certificates for participating in cleanup month: American Legion Auxiliary Unit 177; Cambridge Station; Comstock Homeowners Association, Cub Scout Pack 882; Fairfax Ferns Garden Club; Fairfax Rotary Club; Foxcroft Condo Association; Girl Scout Troop 1952; Great Oaks Homeowners Association; Little River Hills Civic Association; Livingston Johnson and Marilyn Gower; Mosby Woods Community Association; Cub Scout Pack 889; Fairfax Christian Church; Fairfax Civitan Club; Fairfax Congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses; Fairfax Oaks Homeowners Association; Fairfax Virginia Chapter of the Harley Owners Group; Farrcroft Community; Kiwanis Club of Fairfax; Max and Ryan Michanczyk; Principia Club of Northern Virginia; Ray Walsh; Rustfield Homeowner's Association; Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, the McCarthy Family.
The mayor and the City Council of the City of Fairfax recently presented the following civic association neighborhood grant program checks: Aspen Grove; Barrister's Keepe; Cambridge Station; Charles Courthouse Square; Comstock Civic Association; Country Club Hills; Crestmont; Crossing of Fairfax; Fairview Citizen's Association; Farrcroft; Foxcroft Colony Condo; Great Oaks; Kirkwood; Maple Trace; Mosby Woods Community; Mosby Woods Condo Association; Olde Fairfax Mews; Ridgecrest; Windy Hills.