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That's the irony I was struck with, while sitting in a court hearing this week regarding Hussein's death.

Hussein was a 25-year-old immigrant from the Middle Eastern country of Yemen, who came to Merced County with his family for a better life and opportunities. He ultimately joined the U.S. Army and served in Afghanistan, according to his brother, Khaled Hussein.

After returning from Afghanistan, Hussein was a clerk at his family's business -- the Santa Nella Market on Highway 33, near Interstate 5. Not long after he started work there, Merced County Sheriff's deputies found Hussein's dead body in a back room of the market, his hands tied behind his back, stabbed eight times in the face and torso with a filet knife. As if that were not enough, the person who killed Hussein during the apparent robbery also jabbed him in the eye with the knife during the assault.

The Washington Post just finished up an in-depth look into the murder
of Chandra Levy. In case you missed it, here is the link:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/metro/specials/chandra/

Reading the series brought back many memories of those hectic days
for me. If I had to use one word to describe them, I would probably
use "crazy." If I had the opportunity to use two words, I would