The lawyer serving as guardian for teenage sniper suspect John Lee Malvo cannot see investigative, educational or mental health records about his ward, a Fairfax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court judge ruled yesterday.
But Judge Charles J. Maxfield rejected a request from three Virginia jurisdictions that the guardian, Todd G. Petit, be removed from the case altogether. Maxfield said Petit should continue to help protect the 17-year-old's constitutional right to due process.
John Lee Malvo is escorted by sheriff's deputies after a hearing in Fairfax juvenile court to consider the status of the teenager's court-appointed guardian.
(Frank Johnston -- The Washington Post)
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| | | | | | | | | | _____Photo Gallery_____
 Sniper Shootings: The region's schools felt like fortresses as helicopters flew overhead and jittery parents walked their children to class. | | | | | | |
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Petit, who was appointed to look after Malvo's interests because his parents are not involved in the case, said yesterday's ruling about access to records will hinder his effort to understand Malvo's background and inform the court about any mental or physical problems or other issues.
"I won't be able to provide much information to the court except what my client gives me," Petit said after the hearing. "I guess what I'm trying to figure out is why the commonwealth is trying to hide this information."
Malvo and John Allen Muhammad, 41, are suspected in 21 shootings -- 14 of them fatal -- across the country, including the October sniper attacks in the Washington region.
Malvo is facing capital murder charges in Fairfax County while Muhammad faces the same charges in Prince William County.
Malvo is scheduled to appear in court Jan. 14 for a preliminary hearing, during which a judge will decide whether his case should be transferred to adult court, where he would face the death penalty. Petit will have to prepare a report on Malvo's background for that hearing.
Yesterday's hearing was held in response to a motion filed by authorities in Fairfax, Prince William and Hanover counties. Officials in those jurisdictions successfully sought to quash a request by Petit for all documents concerning Malvo, including the records of the criminal investigations into the sniper attacks.
Robert Ross, an assistant county attorney for Fairfax, argued that Petit wasn't entitled to the criminal case file and that handing it over would be "a complete circumvention of the traditional and overriding process of discovery."
Hanover County Commonwealth's Attorney Kirby Porter said in court that allowing Petit to examine records of the criminal investigation would have broad implications in other cases and would "abolish the rule against fishing expeditions."
Maxfield agreed that the state does not have to turn over the documents, but he denied a second, broader motion to have Petit removed from the case.
Fairfax, Prince William and Hanover officials argued that Malvo no longer needs a guardian because three defense lawyers have been appointed to represent him.
But Maxfield said he was persuaded by a Nov. 7 opinion in which a U.S. magistrate judge in Maryland found that a guardian should be appointed to protect the constitutional rights of a juvenile defendant named John Doe. Petit said that John Doe is Malvo and that the opinion was written after a closed hearing shortly after his arrest.
Petit, who said he will ask to stay on as guardian even after Malvo turns 18 in February, said that he works in tandem with the defense attorneys but that his role is different. Without a guardian, Petit argued, Malvo cannot be properly defended.
Because Malvo's parents are not involved in the case, Petit said, he makes sure that Malvo is sheltered, fed and healthy. He also consults with the defense team. "Basically, I make sure that he is living," Petit said.
Last month, federal immigration officials in Seattle ordered that Malvo's mother, Una James, be deported to Jamaica. She has 30 days to appeal, and it is not clear when she might leave the United States. Prosecutors said Malvo's birth certificate does not name his father.
Petit said he has not been able to reach James.
Muhammad is scheduled to appear Dec. 12 in Prince William County Circuit Court for a hearing on a request by several media outlets that the court allow video coverage of his trial.
