Man Who Misled Sniper Probers Gets Jail, Fine

A man accused of falsely telling police that he witnessed one of the sniper shootings in October pleaded no contest to an obstruction of justice charge.

Matthew Dowdy, 37, of Falls Church, was sentenced to six months in jail and fined $1,000 on the misdemeanor count. He has been jailed since Oct. 18 on $75,000 bond.

Dowdy was charged after the Oct. 14 shooting of Linda Franklin in a Home Depot parking garage. He told police he witnessed the shooting, but security cameras showed he was inside the store at the time, prosecutors said.