The Forest Is His Ally

A fugitive reappears, only to slink back into the woods--among those for whom he is almost a hero

What becomes a legend most? Mystery and elusiveness--and keeping several steps ahead of the law. Six months ago, when federal agents identified Eric Robert Rudolph as the man they believe responsible for the Jan. 29 bombing of an abortion clinic in Birmingham, Ala., that killed an off-duty police officer and severely wounded a nurse, they were confident they would arrest the itinerant carpenter within a matter of days. But like a latter-day, albeit sinister, Robin Hood eluding the Sheriff of Nottingham, Rudolph, 31, a former private in the 101st Airborne skilled at surviving in the wilderness, vanished into the mountainous woods...

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