Unusual Ground Path For Shuttle Landing

STS-131 will be making an unusual diagonal, cross-country ground track for it's scheduled landing Monday morning. Following the Columbia disaster in 2003, the orbiter was directed over paths that limited it's time over populated areas, for the very good reason that only blind luck prevented injury or death on the ground as Columbia's debris rained down over several states.

I don't know why this policy was changed. Perhaps to give a big chunk of the US an opportunity to see a Space Shuttle fly overhead before they are forever grounded. A victory lap of sorts? I wonder who made this decision?