Needless and heinous

Treva Gray's death came 10 days after Dandridge arrived in Washington from a Goochland County prison, where he had just completed serving an 11-year sentence for armed robberies in Alexandria and Washington.

The release of Dandridge seems to have directly resulted in the deaths of 8 people in less than a month.

My first thought is "what were his 11 years in prison like - that he went from burglaries to multiple homicides?" Scratch that. My first thought, really more of a feeling, is "Die scumbag, die."

But I do wonder why this soon-to-be-killer was released from prison while in the frame of mind that produced these murders. I understand that a sentence is finite and that a convict cannot be held longer than his sentence. So I wonder if all serious crimes shouldn't be punished with a "X years to life" sentence, wherein the convicted gets X years initially, which can be added to indefinitely if he does not exhibit clear indicators of reform.

Perhaps a sentence between death and life exists. That would be the "X years to life to death" sentence, wherein the convicted gets X years initially, which can be added to indefinitely, which can be replaced by death if the convict's continued prison exploits warrant.

I can't really speak to the murders themselves. Needless and heinous are the two words which spring to mind. What were the motives? Money? Who wouldn't give a burglar whatever he wanted, just to keep one's life?

It's made me think about my situation - and what my wife and I would do if robbed. Though we have assets in banks and other financial institutions, these assets are not easily withdrawn in the amounts a burglar would immediately desire. And to get those amounts, he'd need me to do the legwork. The only possessions of serious immediate value are my wife's jewelry and our cars. A burglar can simply take these things and leave. A smart burglar will rob us and leave us to build more assets that, in time, will warrant another burglary.

Then again, the smart burglar is something of an oxymoron.