Experts Try to Decode Musings Linked to Malvo

Handwritten drawings and musings taken from the jail cell of sniper suspect Lee Boyd Malvo include the obscure reflections of long-dead political philosophers, references to the popular movie “The Matrix” and a series of quotations from reggae music.

Psychiatrists who have examined the writings say they may be the obsessive ruminations of a mentally ill prisoner or simply the aggressive imagery of an angry teenager. But they agree that the writings show a confused adolescent who is smart and well-read.

The writings were taken secretly from Malvo’s cell at the Fairfax County, Va., jail, photocopied and provided to investigators on the sniper task force preparing for the trial of Malvo, 18, and his co-defendant, John Allen Muhammad, 42, authorities said. The men are accused in a violent cross-country odyssey of shootings that left 13 people dead, including 10 in the Washington area, last fall. Both face capital murder trials in Virginia.

Two pages of the writings feature drawings of Malvo himself -- on both pages, a sniper’s scope is drawn around Malvo’s own head.

“The cross hairs thing on his face is a representation of how he feels -- in the cross hairs of this situation,” said Bruce Smoller, a forensic psychiatrist in Chevy Chase, Md.

The two pages mix pop culture references to “The Matrix” and the songs of reggae musician Bob Marley with strong allusions to the Muslim faith and references to the political theories of Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Socrates, Thomas Jefferson and others. But the interpretations sometimes seem confused or mistaken, and one long handwritten passage appears to have been copied from a book.

The writings appear on the back of Fairfax County Jail forms given to Malvo when he was held apart from the rest of the jail population because he was a juvenile. Sheriff Stan Barry said the documents were taken directly from Malvo’s cellblock when he was the only prisoner there. The handwriting also bears a resemblance to the handwriting on two of the notes left at scenes of the shootings that sources have said were written by Malvo.

Michael Arif, one of Malvo’s lawyers, declined to discuss the content of the writings. “We can’t comment on whether the drawings are from him or not,” Arif said. Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Atty. Robert F. Horan Jr. declined to comment on the writings, other than to say, “They are interesting, to say the least.” He would not say whether they would be used as evidence at Malvo’s trial, but sources close to the investigation indicated Horan may show them to the jury in the penalty phase, hoping to convince jurors that Malvo would pose a danger to others if he is not executed.

The writings appear focused, in part, on “The Matrix.” “Free Your Mind! The Body Will Follow!” the writings say, along with, “You are a slave to the Matrix ‘control,’ ” all references to the 1999 science fiction film starring Keanu Reeves and Laurence Fishburne. The film theorized that the world in 1999 was actually a computer simulation created by an evil artificial intelligence 200 years in the future. One page refers to Fishburne’s time-traveling character Morpheus telling Reeves’ character: “Free first your mind, trust me! The body will follow!”

Sources familiar with Malvo’s six-hour interview with Fairfax police on Nov. 7 said he referred to “The Matrix” and the theories it espouses several times. Prosecutors have said Malvo also told police that day that he had fired the shots in at least three of the sniper shootings, including the slaying of FBI analyst Linda Franklin, 47. Malvo faces a November trial in that killing.

Several law enforcement sources said they are confident the drawings and writings are Malvo’s. Both pages of the writing are signed “John Lee Muhammad.” Sources close to the investigation said this was the name Muhammad gave to Malvo during their travels. Malvo has referred to Muhammad as his father. “Dad, Taalibah, John, Mom, Salina, I’m sorry” appears just below the signatures. Taalibah, John Jr. and Salina are Muhammad’s children from his second marriage, with Mildred Muhammad, who lived in Clinton, Md., during the sniper shootings. Malvo lived for a time with Muhammad and his children in Antigua.

Perhaps the most striking aspect of the drawings is the prevalence of the cross hairs. Above two portraits of Malvo are the words, “Read, travel & train.” Sniper-scope cross hairs are drawn through each portrait. Below the portraits are the words, “Revolution Time Stand Up!”