Thread: Armed militia group attempting to overthrow the government

Armed Group Refusing to Leave Oregon Wildlife Refuge: Sheriff

An armed group that has occupied a wildlife refuge center in Oregon over grievances with the federal government has refused a sheriff's request to leave and no more meetings are planned, the Harney County Sheriff's Office said Friday.

The group, led by Ammon Bundy, declined Sheriff David Ward's request during a meeting Thursday, but the sheriff planned to talk with the group again Friday.

"The people on the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge made it clear that they have no intention of honoring the sheriff's request to leave. Because of that, there are no planned meetings or calls at this time," the Harney County Sheriff's Office said in a statement Friday afternoon.

The sheriff's announcement came after Bundy told reporters Friday, "we're not the least bit ashamed of our actions," according to NBC affiliate KTVZ.

Ward "is keeping all options open" the statement said. The FBI is also involved, and has said it is working toward a peaceful resolution. There have been no arrests.

The group took over the headquarters at the wildlife refuge on Saturday following a protest over jail sentences imposed on two ranchers convicted of setting fires on government owned land.

Bundy has also said the group wants federally owned land turned over to local control. At a face-to-face meeting with Ward Thursday, Bundy said he and his compatriots were "being ignored again."

Bundy is the son of Cliven Bundy, the Nevada rancher who faced off with the federal government in 2014 after agents tried to seize his cattle over more than $1 million in unpaid grazing fees. In the face of an armed demonstration and standoff, the agents stood down.

On Wednesday Ward said at a community meeting that the armed group should go home, and took exception to the fact that the occupiers are from outside of the area. He said they "hijacked" the protest over the ranchers.

"You don't to come here from elsewhere and tell us how we're going to live our lives," Ward said.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown on Thursday said the armed protesters "need to decamp immediately and face the consequences.

Armed Group Refusing to Leave Oregon Wildlife Refuge: Sheriff -

Militia groups pledge support to leaders of Oregon wildlife refuge occupation

Members of self-styled militia groups offer to act as peacekeeping force in week-long standoff over land rights

Members of self-styled militia groups met on Friday with armed protesters occupying a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon, pledging support for their cause, if not their methods, and offering to act as a peacekeeping force in the week-long standoff over land rights.

During the 30-minute meeting at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, a leader of the occupation, Ammon Bundy, told about a dozen representatives of such groups as Pacific Patriots Network, Oath Keepers and III% that he had no immediate plans to abandon the siege.

"I was asked to do this by the Lord," said Bundy, a Mormon, as some of the militia members nodded in understanding. "I did it how he told me to do it."

Earlier on Friday the Pacific Patriots Network called on its members to establish a safety perimeter around the refuge in remote southeastern Oregon to prevent a "Waco-style situation" from unfolding.

In 1993 federal agents laid siege to a compound in Waco, Texas, being held by the Branch Davidians religious sect for 51 days before the standoff ended in a gun battle and fire. Four federal agents and more than 80 members of the group died, including 23 children.

The Pacific Patriots Network has previously said that while it agrees with Bundy's land rights grievances, it does not support the occupation, a position leader Brandon Rapolla reiterated during the meeting.

Bundy thanked Rapolla and handed him a small roll of bills, which he said came from donations.

"We're friends, but we're operating separately," Rapolla, a former Marine who helped defend the Bundys in 2014 in their standoff with the US government at their Nevada ranch, told Reuters in an earlier interview.

The militia members are not joining the occupation, but are sleeping in their vehicles or in hotels in Burns, he said.

Rapolla said he had also taken sausage McMuffins to FBI agents who are stationed at nearby Burns Municipal Airport to monitor the occupation and had coffee with deputies from the county sheriff's office on Thursday.

The meetings were friendly, he said, and he told them that they were there to make sure neither side escalates the dispute.

"That's really the point of militias: it's community involvement," Rapolla said. "If something happens in your community, that's what militias are for."

Some two dozen armed protesters have occupied the headquarters of the refuge since last Saturday, marking the latest incident in the so-called Sagebrush Rebellion, a decades-old conflict over federal control of land and resources in the US West.

The move followed a demonstration in support of two local ranchers, Dwight Hammond Jr. and his son Steven, who were returned to prison earlier this week for setting fires that spread to federal land.

A lawyer for Hammond family has said that the occupiers do not speak for the family.

Ammon Bundy met briefly with Harney County Sheriff David Ward on Thursday but rejected the lawman's offer of safe passage out of the state to end the standoff.

During a press conference on Friday morning, Bundy seemed to soften his position, saying: "We will take that offer but not yet and we will go out of this county and out of this state as free men."

Following Bundy's press conference on Friday morning, a lands right activist opposed to the occupation spoke to the media.

"This is about furthering an extremist right-wing agenda," Barrett Kaiser, a Montana resident and a representative of the Center for Western Priorities said, as supporters of Bundy tried to interrupt him and argue with him. "They need to be charged and prosecuted."

Local residents have expressed a mixture of sympathy for the Hammond family, suspicion of the federal government's motives and frustration with the occupation.

Federal law enforcement agents and local police have so far kept away from the occupied site, maintaining no visible presence outside the park in a bid to avoid a violent confrontation.

Militia groups pledge support to leaders of Oregon wildlife refuge occupation -

ALIPAC Asks Donald Trump and Ted Cruz campaigns to step in Oregon dispute

Armed men arrive to 'de-escalate' Oregon refuge standoff, then leave



The men said they were members of the Pacific Patriot Network, a consortium of groups from Oregon, Washington and Idaho.

Tribune wire reports Contact Reporter

A group of armed men from around the Pacific Northwest who arrived at the occupied national wildlife refuge in Oregon on Saturday morning, left on Saturday afternoon after the people leading the occupation told them they were not needed.

Todd MacFarlane, a Utah lawyer acting as a mediator, said occupation leader Ammon Bundy didn't want the armed visitors there and was concerned about the perception they conveyed.

The Oregonian reports Bundy told them they didn't need the security services the group was offering. MacFarlane says Bundy and the other leaders of the occupation were "alarmed" by the arrival of the Pacific Patriot Network members, some of whom were carrying rifles.

Their leader, Brandon Curtiss, said the group came to "de-escalate" the situation by providing security for those inside and outside the compound.

One of the original occupiers of the refuge, LaVoy Finicum, said the group appreciates the Pacific Patriot Network's help, but "we want the long guns put away."

The leader of the standoff group — Ammon Bundy — has repeatedly rejected calls to leave buildings at the refuge despite pleas from the county sheriff, from many local residents and from Oregon's governor, among others.

On Saturday, militants drove government-owned vehicles and heavy equipment around the compound, saying the trucks and backhoes now belong to the local community.

They also covered the national refuge sign with a new sign saying: "Harney County Resource Center" in white block letters over a blue background.


The occupation of a wildlife refuge by armed protesters in the western state of Oregon reflects a decades-old dispute over land rights in the United States, where local communities have increasingly sought to take back government-owned land.


The Harney County Joint Information Center put out a statement on Saturday, saying they continue to work for a peaceful solution.

"The FBI's investigation is ongoing so it would not be appropriate to provide details at this time," the statement said.

The local school district announced there would be classes on Monday, after a week without school because of safety concerns.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/n...109-story.html

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http://www.sfchronicle.com/news/scie...#photo-9226754

Oregon standoff: Bundy, militants destroy fence at federal refuge


Ammon Bundy, the leader of the militant group occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, helps to take down a fence that he said was installed last year by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (Thomas Boyd/The Oregonian)

By Luke Hammill | The Oregonian/OregonLive
on January 11, 2016 at 2:13 PM, updated January 11, 2016 at 2:24 PM

BURNS — Militants presiding over an armed occupation of a federal bird sanctuary destroyed a portion of a fence Monday afternoon that they said was installed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service – using the agency's own equipment.

The stunt was perhaps the militants' boldest yet since overtaking the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge earlier this month. Arizona businessman Ammon Bundy and his band of protesters traveled about five miles south of refuge headquarters to a property where they said a local ranching family grazes cattle.

Bundy, son of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, said the Fish and Wildlife Service used a $100,000 grant to install the fence last year, preventing the family's 600 cattle from grazing on nearby public land.

"This will help them out, being able to run their ranch like they have in the past," Bundy said. The militants had permission from the family to destroy the fence, he added. "They actually showed us where they wanted it," Bundy said.

The militants removed barbed wire – Bundy with only his bare hands – and then used an excavator adorned with the Fish and Wildlife Service's logo to pluck stakes out of the ground.

The Fish and Wildlife Service condemned the militants' actions in a written statement.

"In the century of [the] Malheur National Wildlife Refuge's existence, enormous effort has been displayed by partners, surrounding communities, ranchers and landowners to restore a devastated landscape," the statement reads.

"Removing fences, damaging any refuge property, or unauthorized use of equipment would be additional unlawful actions by the illegal occupiers. Any movement of cattle onto the refuge or other activities that are not specifically authorized by [the Fish and Wildlife Service] constitutes trespassing.

"If they take down the fences, it hurts the refuge, but it also destroys the positive conservation impacts reaped from decades of direct collaboration and sweat equity paid by the Harney County (and surrounding) communities, ranchers, landowners, partners and friends."

The militants have advocated for the federal government to hand over public land in Harney County to local ranchers.

http://www.oregonlive.com/oregon-sta..._militant.html

What Do the Armed Militia Occupying the Wildlife Refuge in Oregon Want? In a Word: Welfare.

Posted: 01/11/2016 2:23 pm EST Updated: 2 hours ago

As the Bundy brothers and company near the end of the first week of occupation at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Burns, Oregon, it has been somewhat confusing as to what their demands are. We know they don't think Dwight and Steven Hammond should go to prison for arson after burning government property, but what are their long-term goals?

Ammon and Ryan Bundy are of course the sons of Cliven Bundy who, in 1993, after purchasing the appropriate permit to use government-owned land for cattle grazing for years, suddenly decided he shouldn't have to. It only took the government 20 years to react and remove the cattle. When a handful of armed protestors showed up in Bundy's defense, the authorities handled it the way all situations should be handled where people raise arms against the government: they released the cattle and ran away (Note: sarcasm). To this day, Cliven Bundy still uses the federal lands for free.

Imagine having to pay a tax to use government property. What kind of world do we live in? (Note: more sarcasm.)

We pay an average of 50 cents per gallon of gasoline just to use the government-owned roads and highways. It's very common.

The thing is we live in a republic of laws. Laws are what guarantee our freedoms. As Meagan Kelly pointed out in her interview with Ammon Bundy, the Hammond brothers "had their day in court, and they were found guilty and it went all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, which denied their appeal."

Ammon Bundy quickly pointed out that he goes by the Supreme Law of the Land. Yes, there is such a thing, but it doesn't mean you can ignore the laws or raise arms against law officials or the government. It only states that the Constitution is the Supreme Law of the Land and all laws must conform to that. Now it's easy to find just about anything in the Constitution to make an argument for any issue, but that's not the purpose of that phrase.

But it is one heck of a great idea.

"I wasn't speeding officer. The speed limits do not apply to me because I go by the Supreme Law of the Land."

"Yes, your Honor, I did strangle her until she stopped breathing, but I go by the Supreme Law of the Land."

Imagine the look of shock on the prosecutor's face and what he must be thinking.Dang, we almost had him, but he pulled the old Supreme Law of the Land defense out of his butt.

I just don't understand what the Bundy's are doing. I grew up on Sand Mountain in the northern part of Alabama where it's mostly rural farmland. The farmers I know, if they want more land for planting or for cattle, they do something weird -- they work for it. They use their hard-earned money to purchase or rent the land.

They don't expect someone to give it to them for free.

That might be a concept as foreign to the Bundy brothers as the American judicial system. But there is a word for what the Bundy's want. When a person expects something free from the government, a handout of money or land, and they think they are entitled to it just for being a citizen, that's called... welfare.

Considering they are willing, in their own words, to stay at the wildlife refuge as long as it takes -- while I can only assume someone is taking care of their homes, families, cars, bills, etc. -- I guess this is a concept they're all too familiar with.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/neal-w...b_8941032.html

JAN 11 2016, 11:29 PM ET

Oregon Sheriff Accuses Armed Protesters of Intimidation, Harassment

by TIM STELLOH


Ammon Bundy, left, meets with Harney County Sheriff David Ward along a road south of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Oregon, January 7, 2016. Jim Urquhart / Reuters

Local law enforcement is accusing armed protesters who seized an Oregon wildlife refuge of harassment and intimidation.

In a statement Monday, Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward described an "uptick" in reports of "law enforcement officers and community members being followed home; of people sitting in cars outside their homes, observing their movements and those of their families; and of people following them and their families as they move around the community."

Ward added, "While not direct physical threats, these activities are clearly designed to try to intimidate."

Federal employees of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, the site occupied by the protestors, also reported "a number of uncomfortable instances" of "unknown" outsiders idling outside their homes, watching them and initiating debates about their employment.

"Many of these confrontations are taking place as their employees are grocery shopping, running errands with their families and trying to lead their day-to day lives," Ward said.

Shortly after the protestors occupied the refuge on January 2, Ward called on them to go home. They have refused to leave, and the authorities have not forced them to heed Ward's demand.

During a meeting last week between Ward and one of the protest leaders, Ammon Bundy, the sheriff even promised a "safe escort" out if they promised to leave peacefully.

Bundy refused, saying he and fellow protesters were being ignored, and that the government had to "acknowledge a redress of grievances by citizens," he said.

In the statement, Ward encouraged residents to report suspicious activities and to take "prudent" safety measures at home, such as locking doors, turning on alarms, keeping curtains closed and outdoor lighting on, and watching for "unusual" vehicles.

Bundy could not immediately be reached for comment.
Earlier Monday, he told reporters that he and other occupiers were examining government documents stored at refuge buildings to "expose" discrimination practices against ranchers, the Associated Press reported.

A video posted on the "Bundy Ranch" Facebook also showed the group removing fencing from the property.

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/...ssment-n494451

Oregon judge: Militia should pay $75K for every day of occupation


Ammon Bundy, despite leading an armed group occupying a national wildlife refuge in Oregon, says his siege will ultimately serve to head off violent conflict with the government. (Associated Press) more >

Exclusive Washington Times Daily Briefing (January 13, 2016)
Washington Times
[COLOR=#DDDDDD !important]
By Kellan Howell - The Washington Times - Wednesday, January 13, 2016

A local judge in Oregon suggested this week that armed militia members occupying a federal wildlife refuge should pay as much as $75,000 a day to make up the cost that their standoff is imposing on the surrounding community.

Harney County Judge Steve Grasty estimates the armed occupation led by cattle rancher Ammon Bundy has cost the community $60,000 to $75,000 each day for the first week of the standoff, the Guardian reported.

Those estimates include the costs of law enforcement overtime, school closures last week, setting up and operating a special command center, keeping county building open late and buying extra supplies and food for country workers.

“We’re going to send Mr. Bundy the bill,” Judge Gratsy said at a meeting with local residents, the Guardian reported.

The costs to the county will grow if the militia continues to stake out the wildlife refuge, despite please from local residents for them to leave. If the standoff drags on for another week, the expenses could add up to more than $1 million, the Guardian reported.

“Harney County is not a wealthy county,” county spokeswoman Laura Cleland said Tuesday, adding it was “on a very strict budget.”

Judge Grasty said he is exploring whether the county could pursue civil litigation to force the Bundy militia to pay the costs. At the least, he said he intends to send Mr. Bundy an invoice when this is over.

“I really want people aware of the costs that these folks are giving all of us,” he told the Guardian, noting that his estimates don’t include expenses outside law enforcement agencies are also incurring. “There is justification in sending them a bill if for no other reason than letting everyone know what this is costing taxpayers.”

The group of occupiers has been holed up in the Malheur national wildlife refuge near Burns, Oregon, for 10 days. The group stormed the refuge to protest the federal government’s land regulations and the imprisonment of two Harney County ranchers in an arson case.

A spokesman for the militia said Tuesday the group planned to hold a community meeting Friday to explain why the group took over the building and when they plan to leave.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/...very-day-occu/

Bundy bodyguard,"Booda Bear", arrested in Arizona

PUBLIC LANDS:

Will Bundy and Co. go to jail?

Phil Taylor, E&E reporter
Greenwire: Friday, January 15, 2016

As the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge rolls into its third week, many are asking whether justice will be served when the siege ends.

No one knows whether the group led by anti-federal crusader Ammon Bundy will leave the southeast Oregon refuge peacefully. The militants had planned to deliver a presentation this evening to Harney County residents about what they want to accomplish before heading home, but elected officials have barred them from using county facilities.

LaVoy Finicum, who is among the dozen or so who have occupied Malheur since Jan. 2, said yesterday he doubts the public meeting will take place.

Assuming the militants do eventually go home, will they face prosecution? And if so, what laws will they be accused of breaking?

The occupiers protesting the federal government's ownership of lands have possibly trespassed, stolen government property, torn down fences and carried firearms where they're not supposed to -- relatively small-time offenses that could add up to significant time in jail.

But any repercussions could be slow in coming.
Bundy's father, Cliven Bundy, has been illegally grazing his cattle for decades on public lands northeast of Las Vegas. In April 2014, as the Bureau of Land Management sought to impound his cows, protesters brought guns, and some appeared to point them at federal officials, a major federal offense that forced BLM to retreat.

With the so-called Battle of Bunkerville approaching its two-year anniversary, the elder Bundy remains a free man, as do the members of his armed posse. The Department of Justice has yet to press charges.

Advocates for public lands -- and the rule of law -- are growing increasingly frustrated by what they see as lax enforcement of laws designed to protect the environment and federal employees.

Bundy's standoff is viewed as a victory by right-wing extremists who may see little risk in challenging the government's domain over 640 million acres of public lands.

After Malheur, critics wonder what's to stop them from seizing another refuge.

"You can expect a lot more of these," said Jeff Ruch, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility. "They can call it 'Militia McDonald's.' They could just franchise it."

Neither the FBI, which is leading the law enforcement response, nor the Justice Department have said anything substantive about the occupation or whether charges will be filed.

Harney County Sheriff Dave Ward has told Oregon Public Broadcasting that the FBI has assured him the militants will "at some point face charges."

So far, no law enforcement officers have come to the refuge -- at least not in uniform -- and authorities have yet to disconnect the power or heat.

That's a "wise course of action" that will keep tensions down and avoid a potentially violent confrontation, said Laurie Levenson, professor of law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles and a former assistant U.S. attorney in California.

The goal is to avoid a bloody confrontation similar to what happened in Waco, Texas, in 1993, where a gun battle between federal agents and the Branch Davidians left 10 dead, and at Ruby Ridge, the northern Idaho site of a deadly confrontation in 1992 between federal agents and suspected white supremacist Randy Weaver and his family.

At Malheur, deciding what charges to file will be a balancing act, Levenson said.

Prosecutors will likely consider the cost of a trial as well as the political risks of giving the militants more time in the limelight.

"Sometimes these people just want to be heard. They want a platform," Levenson said. "You start making them into martyrs or a cause célèbre."

But the militants seem to have given prosecutors a smorgasbord of legal options.

Long list of possible offenses

It could be argued that they've stolen federal property. Federal law says anyone who steals or "knowingly converts to his use" federal property worth more than $1,000 can be sentenced to up to 10 years in jail.

Militants appear to have crossed that threshold by, according to various news outlets, operating government vehicles, a Wildcat excavator and computers.

DOJ could also charge them with smaller misdemeanor counts such as trespassing, Levenson and other experts said.


Guns are generally permitted on wildlife refuges, but not at visitor centers or administrative buildings. Photo by Phil Taylor.

Another offense could be the possession of firearms inside federal buildings.

Guns are allowed at all national wildlife refuges -- and hunting is widely permitted -- as long as users comply with local firearm laws. But guns are not allowed at visitor centers, refuge administrative office buildings, refuge maintenance offices and workshops, according to a 2010 press release from FWS.

A sign taped to the door of the refuge visitors center makes that abundantly clear. Violators could face a year in jail or five years if the firearm was used "in the commission of a crime," it says.

The militants have been packing pistols on their hips, but they don't appear to be checking them at the doors of refuge buildings.

On Monday, the militants reportedly cut down a fence on public lands to allow a local ranching family to graze their cattle on the public lands, even though the rancher never asked them to do so.

There appears to be a law banning that, too. The penalty is up to a year in jail for "whoever knowingly and unlawfully breaks, opens, or destroys any gate, fence, hedge, or wall inclosing any lands of the United States."

Conspiracy, which is defined as two or more people conspiring "to commit any offense against the United States," may also be in prosecutors' tool box.

An Oregonian investigation found that Ammon Bundy and Montana militia leader Ryan Payne "privately strategized" the occupation for months.

Trouble making charges stick

But some charges, trespassing in particular, might be tough for the government to prove in court, said Andy Stahl, executive director of Forest Service Employees for Environmental Ethics.

"One doesn't need prior permission or authorization to visit the Malheur refuge or to walk into its administrative headquarters," he said. "When it comes to trespass law, that fact distinguishes public from private land, which is ironic because what the Bundys seek -- privatizing these lands -- would bar them from entry."

On public land, political speech is typically given a high degree of protection from government interference, he said.

In addition, FWS has made no apparent attempt to reopen its office and send employees back to work, Stahl said. The refuge buildings were unoccupied on Jan. 2 when the occupation began.

"With a sympathetic jury, one could imagine the Bundys saying the government abandoned the buildings before a shot was fired, so to speak, and, thus, there's nothing disruptive to the government about using them for this political protest," he said.

He added, "FWS's continued silence doesn't help matters. It does not appear that FWS has even asked the militants to leave. Its silence could be interpreted by a jury as acquiescence."

The United States is not the only government that has been potentially harmed by the occupation, said Harney Judge Steve Grasty.

The occupation has disrupted life in the quiet county of 7,000. The local school district cancelled classes for a week, and county employees spent a day off work. The county has lost at least $250,000 over the past two weeks, Grasty said.

"I'm trying to figure out how to send [the militants] an invoice," he said. "Do we have recourse to collect it? I don't know. But I think the world needs to know what this costs in tax dollars."

Action in the works?

Critics of the occupation say they're hopeful the wheels of justice are beginning to move.

Ruch of PEER pointed to the federal government's response to a Utah county commissioner's decision in May 2014 to lead an illegal all-terrain vehicle ride through Recapture Canyon, which BLM had closed to motorized use.

Like Malheur, the federal government took a soft approach. BLM did not cite any of the participants that day but sent plainclothes officers to document the protest.

Four months later, the Justice Department charged San Juan County Commissioner Phil Lyman and four others with counts of conspiracy and operation of ATVs where they are barred, misdemeanors it said were each punishable by a year in jail and a fine of $100,000. Lyman and one other defendant were convicted by a federal jury, and Lyman last month was sentenced to 10 days in jail and forced to pay $96,000 in restitution.

DOJ is facing intense pressure to hold the Malheur occupants accountable, too.

"No Wacos doesn't mean no action," Ruch said.
Former employees of BLM and the Forest Service last week concurred.

In a letter to Attorney General Loretta Lynch, the Public Lands Foundation and the National Association of Forest Service Retirees argued the standoffs at Bunkerville and Malheur amount to "domestic terrorism" because they endangered human lives, appeared aimed at coercing or intimidating the civilian population, and occurred in the United States.

"Doing nothing has allowed these domestic terrorists to act with impunity," they wrote. "The rule of law has been completely undermined by the lack of prosecution in these cases."

Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) said DOJ's failure, as of yet, to prosecute Cliven Bundy set the stage for the Malheur occupation.

"He stood down the government at the point of a gun, and he's still illegally grazing, and nobody, nobody at the Justice Department has seen fit to lift a finger against him," DeFazio said in a floor speech. "It's time for the Justice Department to take some action. Wake up down there."

http://www.eenews.net/stories/1060030705