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Dead Constitution See other Dead Constitution Articles Title: Life Term for Attacks On Va. Drug Dealers [Dope Dealing = Interstate Commerce] A Woodbridge man was sentenced to life in prison yesterday after admitting that he beat a marijuana dealer to death in the Fairfax area in January 2003, then shot and wounded another drug dealer in Merrifield later that month. During the hearing in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Milton P. Jurado, 21, also agreed to testify against three co-defendants in his federal conspiracy trial, and prosecutors in turn agreed to try to place Jurado in the witness protection program. In addition to the federal charges, Jurado's cooperation could lead to capital murder charges in Fairfax County against co-defendants Nick Halteh, Joshua Fritter and Pierre Alvarez. A relative of Christopher Campero, 18, found him dead in his bed on Jan. 17, 2003, in his apartment in the 3100 block of Cedar Grove Drive, just off Blake Lane near Fairfax Circle. Campero's family gathered in the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee yesterday to glare at Jurado and testify to their loss. Jurado told investigators that he, Halteh, Fritter and another man drove to Campero's apartment to rob him, according to court records. When they found Campero asleep, Jurado beat him in the head with a crowbar, killing him, the court records state. The group then stole marijuana, jewelry and a video game system. Eleven days later, Jurado said, he, Halteh and Alvarez decided to rob another drug dealer, identified in Fairfax court records as Siro A. Hernandez. Hernandez was shot in the head and robbed of a pound of marijuana, then dumped out of a car in Merrifield. Jurado was convicted in Fairfax Circuit Court of malicious wounding in that case and sentenced to 13 years. Halteh was found not guilty. No one was charged in the killing of Campero until Fairfax detectives took the case to federal prosecutors. In April, a federal grand jury indicted Jurado, Halteh, Fritter and Alvarez for conspiracy to interrupt interstate commerce -- marijuana dealing -- by robbery and violence in the killing of Campero and the wounding of Hernandez. Prosecutors said the federal conspiracy charge was not the same as Virginia's malicious wounding charge and so did not constitute double jeopardy. Jurado apologized to Campero's family and told the judge, "The only reason I step up now is I deserve to be in prison for the rest of my life." His attorney, William B. Cummings, said it was the first time in his 41 years as a lawyer that a client pleaded guilty knowing he would get a life sentence without parole. Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan L. Fahey said Jurado's agreement to cooperate was accompanied by a letter from Fairfax Commonwealth's Attorney Robert F. Horan Jr. that he would not be prosecuted for capital murder. And, Fahey noted, "the nature of [Jurado's] cooperation requires his protection" in the federal witness protection program. Horan said he could not discuss whether he would seek capital murder charges against Jurado's co-defendants. "We'll have to wait and see what kind of case they've got," he said. Jurado sat calmly as Campero's family members took the witness stand and lambasted him. "You took a beautiful boy from us," said Gonzalo Campero, the victim's father. "You destroyed us. I don't understand why you did it." Susanna Robertson, the victim's aunt, looked at Jurado and said: "I really hope you burn in hell. Look at you. You're not even sorry for what you did."
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#1. To: DeaconBenjamin (#0)
Wouldn't that charge apply to every law enforcement agency in the nation?
Interrupting interstate commerce without a license?
Silly Dakmar, didn't you get the memo about things only being illegal if you don't have a badge?
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