Prosecutor plans to witness Muhammad execution

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If all goes as planned, Prince William County Commonwealth’s Attorney Paul Ebert — known for putting more men on death row than any other prosecutor in Virginia — will witness his first execution tonight.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to block the scheduled execution of sniper mastermind John Allen Muhammad. The court did not comment Monday on why it refused to consider his appeal. Muhammad’s only option now is last-minute clemency from Gov. Timothy M. Kaine.

Ebert said he will witness the execution along with 12 members of the law-enforcement task force responsible for hunting down Muhammad and teen accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo following their three-week murder spree in October 2002.

Muhammad is set to die by injection at the Greensville Corrections Center at 9 p.m. for the slaying of Vietnam veteran Dean Harold Meyers at a Sunoco gas station on Va. 234 outside Manassas. Meyers, of Gaithersburg, Md., was the ninth victim of the sniper attacks in Washington, Maryland and Virginia. In all, 13 people were shot and 10 died.

Ebert was chosen to prosecute Muhammad due to his tough reputation of winning capital murder convictions. The sniper will be the ninth Prince William killer put to death since the re-instatement of capital punishment in 1976. Three more await execution, including Larry Elliot, who is set to be die a week from today for killing a Woodbridge couple in 2001. Ebert prosecuted them all.

Watching Muhammad die will be Ebert’s first experience witnessing an execution. He says he’s going to show support for victims’ families, and the task force members.

“These guys worked hard,” he said. “They want to see it to its end.”

Muhammad and Malvo are also suspected of fatal shootings in other states, including Louisiana, Alabama and Arizona. Malvo, who was 17 at the time of the killings, is serving a life sentence.

Muhammad’s attorney, Jon Sheldon, is still fighting for his client’s life.

“In its effort to race John Allen Muhammad to his death before his appeals could be pursued, the state of Virginia will execute a severely mentally ill man who also suffered from Gulf War Syndrome the day before Veterans day,” Sheldon said in an e-mail Monday, shortly after the Supreme Court decision.

Communities editor Kari Pugh can be reached at 703-878-8056.