Police chief who hunted snipers blocked from book and film deal

The Maryland police chief in charge of the manhunt for the Washington DC sniper who terrorised the region last October, killing 10 people, has been forbidden from writing a book on the experience that had already attracted interest from Hollywood.

The Ethics Commission of Montgomery County in Maryland, where the spate of killings started, issued a ruling saying that Police Chief Charles Moose would be in serious breach of ethical guidelines if he went through with a deal signed with the Dutton publishing house in New York.

America was riveted by the killings, not least because the victims appeared to be picked at random as they went about daily chores such as filling their cars with petrol. After at first being frustrated in their manhunt, polices forces under Chief Moose's command finally apprehended two men.

Since then, the two accused, John Allen Muhammad, 42, and Lee Boyd Malvo, 18, have been linked to 20 shootings. Both could receive the death penalty.

"It is not in the best interest of the county to allow its employees to trade on their government activities for private gain in such a direct and immediate fashion," the ethics panel ruled. "These principles are at the core of the prohibition against using the prestige of one's office for private gain."

Chief Moose had tentatively titled his book Three Weeks in October: The Manhunt for the DC Sniper. He has argued that the work would be inspiring, because it would also tell his own story of rising from a poor background to take over the Montgomery police force.

The rejection by the ethics board also puts a movie deal in doubt. But Chief Moose may decide to quit the force to pursue the book without interference.