Showing posts with label Property Rights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Property Rights. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 2, 2016

'If You're Gonna Shoot, Just Shoot Me'! Victoria Sharp Says LaVoy Finicum Unjustly 'Gunned Down' by LEOs (VIDEO)

The latest developments are here, "LATEST: #Malheur Holdout David Fry Says Occupation at Wildlife Refuge is 'Civil Disobedience'." And here, "Ammon Bundy's Attorneys Withdraw Release Request for Release from Custody (VIDEO)."

Ms. Sharp's covered previously here, "#Malheur Occupier Victoria Sharp Says LaVoy Finicum Had 'Hands Up' Before Police Opened Fire (AUDIO)."

And she's out now with additional statements in a new CNN interview, "Woman says she was feet away when shots killed Oregon occupier Finicum."

And stay with the interview all the way to the end. Sharp says that "If I lose my life for the future of America, it's worth it."

(CNN) Victoria Sharp says she is certain LaVoy Finicum was unjustly gunned down by state police after they and the FBI pursued his vehicle in southern Oregon.

"I was just a few feet away in the truck," she insisted to CNN. "I know what I saw."

Sharp, 18, claims she was one of three people in the back seat of a white truck driven by Finicum, one of the armed occupiers at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. Sharp says she and seven siblings went to the occupation site recently to sing Christian songs and provide "moral support for the protest of the federal government."

They left the refuge near Burns last Tuesday for a community meeting in another town. The FBI said it had information that Finicum and the others in two vehicles were armed.

Finicum pulled away from an attempt to arrest him and Ammon Bundy, the leader of the nearly four-week occupation. A dramatic chase down tree-lined U.S. 395 ensued. As shown on an FBI video taken from a pursuing helicopter, it ends when Finicum swerves to miss a roadblock, nearly hitting an officer and plowing into deep snow.

The driver quickly exits the video with hands in the air....

Sharp said Thursday that as soon as the vehicle hit the snow bank, she heard shots hit the truck. It's not clear on the video whether any rounds were hitting the vehicle.

"He had his hands up," Sharp said. "He was shouting that if they were going to shoot, then just shoot him. I remember him saying that if they shoot him, it's an innocent man's blood on their hands."

As seen on the FBI video, Finicum reaches twice toward a jacket pocket. Officers fire. Finicum falls to the ground. The FBI said it recovered a loaded 9mm semiautomatic handgun in that left side pocket of his jacket.

Sharp said she heard three shots and saw Finicum fall. "He wasn't doing anything aggressive, anything," she insisted. "He was just walking with his hands up."

When asked whether Finicum reached for a weapon, Sharp said, "He was not showing any signs of aggression."
Check back here for all the breaking coverage...

LATEST: #Malheur Holdout David Fry Says Occupation at Wildlife Refuge is 'Civil Disobedience'

Following-up from earlier, "Ammon Bundy's Attorneys Withdraw Release Request for Release from Custody (VIDEO)." Here's an update from developments out on the range.

From Molly Young, at the Portland Oregonian, "Oregon standoff holdout David Fry says: 'This is the time to break the law'":

BURNS -- The final occupiers of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge are still holding out for a miracle and taking all the prayers they can get.

FBI officials confirmed the armed occupation continued Tuesday, its 32nd day.

Jailed occupation leader Ammon Bundy issued another statement asking the four holdouts to "go home now so their lives are not taken."

He signaled what he wants to happen next: Have the FBI and Oregon State Police leave Harney County so the county sheriff can "cordon off the refuge" as local residents decide what to do with the land, he said.

Local leaders have responded in the past to similar demands by Bundy with silence or an oft-repeated request for him to abandon the standoff and return home.

In the meantime, the remaining occupiers are staying warm by gathering around a fire and eating hamburgers and vegetables...
Keep reading.

And check back for updates. These people can't holdout forever, and things might get crazy, although hopefully not tragic.

Ammon Bundy's Attorneys Withdraw Release Request for Release from Custody (VIDEO)

CNN has a report, "Oregon standoff leader Ammon Bundy withdraws request for release":
(CNN)Ammon Bundy, the rancher who led an armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon, abruptly reversed course Tuesday and withdrew a request to be released from custody as he awaits trial on a felony conspiracy charge, court papers showed.

Bundy had initially been scheduled Tuesday to ask a federal judge in Oregon to release him on electronic GPS surveillance, his attorney Mike Arnold said.

But now Bundy will resubmit that request at a later time, his attorneys said in court papers. He will stay incarcerated "to gather further evidence of his statements and actions encouraging a peaceful protest and civil disobedience," court documents said.

Bundy eventually plans to challenge U.S. Magistrate Judge Stacie Beckerman's order to keep him in custody pending the trial, according to court documents.

Bundy's attorneys have indicated they ultimately plan to argue in U.S. District Court that their client should be permitted to stay at his home in Idaho and only return to Oregon for court appearances. The federal court system's pretrial services earlier recommended Bundy's conditional release, according to court papers filed by Bundy's attorneys...
And at KOIN News 6 Portland, "Bundy withdraws release appeal before hearing: Motion withdrew, lawyers say will revisit later."

Watch:



PREVIOUSLY: "Tense Standoff Between Rival Lavoy Finicum Protesters at Harney County Courthouse, Burns, Oregon (VIDEO)."

Tense Standoff Between Rival Lavoy Finicum Protesters at Harney County Courthouse, Burns, Oregon (VIDEO)

Following up from yesterday, "'Hands Up Don't Shoot'! — Dueling LaVoy Finicum Protests at Harney County Courthouse in Burns, Oregon."

Watch, here's Jennifer Dowling, for KOIN News 6 Portland:


Monday, February 1, 2016

Burns, Oregon, Stays Warm and Welcoming as Circus of Outsiders Swarms Residents

Following-up on earlier entries, "LATEST: #Malheur Occupier David Fry Remains at Wildlife Refuge Along with Last Three Holdouts," and "'Hand Up Don't Shoot'! — Dueling LaVoy Finicum Protests at Harney County Courthouse in Burns, Oregon."

And now, at the New York Times, "An Unwanted Circus Descends, and an Oregon Town Strives to Stay Kind":

BURNS, Ore. — Remote Western towns, in midwinter’s grip, definitely have some romance to them. But this one has become a circus tent: A giddy but tense crush of humanity has descended here in rural eastern Oregon, benefiting businesses and swamping them, filling bars, and making motel rooms unattainable amid a bizarre tide of guns, police, reporters and ideologues quoting (at length) from the United States Constitution.

That’s Burns.

There is no question things have been rough here. The armed occupation that began on Jan. 2 at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge outside town has dragged on, and tensions heightened last week with the fatal shooting of one of the most visible occupiers, LaVoy Finicum, by Oregon State Police troopers in an arrest that went bad.

The place is just crazily overrun. Every motel room within 70 miles is taken. Barstools are packed at the Central Pastime Tavern, with journalists and armed antigovernment protesters elbow to elbow, tucking down I.P.A.s and perhaps — for braver souls — the bull testicles on the bar menu. Hard to know, but there are probably also undercover F.B.I. agents now and then playing pool in the back, trying to appear like locals in boots and jeans under the mounted bighorn sheep and buffalo heads.

Residents have argued with each other over what to think about the occupiers and their goals, and they have wounded one another in the process.

Anxieties could ratchet up again this week, with a protest planned for Monday at the Harney County courthouse by self-styled patriot groups angry about Mr. Finicum’s death. The United States Marshals Office also said Sunday that one of the 11 people arrested in the standoff — Shawna Cox — had been released, though the authorities would not provide other details. A judge had previously said Ms. Cox could not leave custody until the occupation had ended.

But here’s the thing: For the most part, Burns has not stopped being warm and welcoming to outsiders, even as that has become harder to do. If you were going to spend nearly the entire month of January in a town of about 2,000 people — isolated by distance in the high eastern Oregon desert, and often with bad weather to boot — you could do a lot worse.

“We just decided to be kind,” said Leah Planinz, who owns Glory Days Pizza with her husband, Nick. She was perhaps talking partly about her philosophy, but more specifically about the restaurant’s overstuffed brown leather couch in the back near the arcade room...
Keep reading.

PREVIOUSLY: "Burns, Oregon: Torn Apart by the Malheur Occupation," and "'Ambushed and Assassinated' — Residents in Burns, Oregon, React to Shooting Death of LaVoy Finicum."

'Hands Up Don't Shoot'! — Dueling LaVoy Finicum Protests at Harney County Courthouse in Burns, Oregon

Following-up from this morning, "LATEST: #Malheur Occupier David Fry Remains at Wildlife Refuge Along with Last Three Holdouts."

Via various sources on Twitter, some tense protesters and counter-protesters:


I'll have more on the protests later tonight, with video if it becomes available. Expect updates...

LATEST: #Malheur Occupier David Fry Remains at Wildlife Refuge Along with Last Three Holdouts

The update, from Julie Turkewitz, of the New York Times:


There's a huge protest going on outside the Harney County Courthouse right now in Burns. I'll have more on that later today, along with all the regular Iowa blogging.

What a day, man.

Office of Bureau of Land Management, Burns, Oregon, Flies the Gadsden Flag (PHOTO)

The Marines and the Navy have flown the flag since 1775, although it seems like BLM's exactly the opposite of what that flag stands for: "Don’t Tread On Me"

Via OPB's Amanda Peacher, on Twitter:


Sunday, January 31, 2016

Malheur Defendant Shawna Cox Is Close Family Friend and the Bundys' Live-In Secretary

Well, perhaps this is something folks might have been wondering about.

At the New York Times, "Who is Shawna Cox, the only woman arrested with Bundy’s Oregon militia?":

 photo 1035x1294-AP_265844010493_zpsdkuyonie.jpg

Thus far, details about [Shawna] Cox are scant, but it is known that she drove from South Utah to East Oregon to join the militia, which hopes to pressure the government to hand federal lands over to local ranchers, loggers, and miners. The protesters — who call themselves “Citizens for Constitutional Freedom,” though they have become known on Twitter as “Y’all Qaeda” — seized the wildlife reserve after a court extended the sentence of Dwight and Steve Hammond, two ranchers jailed for setting fire to federal lands. The movement was spearheaded by Ammon and Ryan Bundy, whose father, Cliven, staged an armed resistance when federal officials tried to stop him from grazing his cattle on government pastures.

A 2014 WND article describes Cox as a “close family friend who has become the Bundys’ live-in secretary.” She spoke out in defense of Cliven Bundy in 2014 after he publicly claimed that African Americans “abort their young children, they put their young men in jail, because they never learned how to pick cotton.” Cox told WND that Bundy is not a racist, and that “We believe slavery is horrible!”

After the takeover of the wildlife reserve, Cox appears to have acted as a spokeswoman for “Citizens for Constitutional Freedom.” On January 4, during a protest in support of the Hammonds, Cox read a letter of grievances from the group, demanding that the verdict against the Hammonds be reviewed. “We the people of these states united, insist that you immediately assemble an independent evidential hearing board,” she said. “We require your thoughtful response within five days of the date of this notice.” Cox also asserted that the letter had been signed by “tens of thousands” of people from across the country, “including Hawaii.”

A few days before her arrest, Cox gave an interview from within the occupied federal building. “When the people come and take their rightful position, then we can go home,” she said. “They are coming; it’s just taking a little while.”
PREVIOUSLY: "VIDEO: Ammon Bundy's Attorneys Address the Media Outside Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse in Portland, January 29, 2016."

LATEST: Busy Signals — Phones and Internet Communications Down at Malheur Refuge #OregonStandoff

Not too much to report.

It's Sunday, and not a whole lot of LEOs have been on the scene.

Jennifer Dowling reports, for KOIN News 6 Portland:



PREVIOUSLY: "LATEST: Malheur Holdouts Say the FBI Has Cut Their Phone and Internet Communications," and "WATCH: Authorities Establish New Roadblock at #Malheur National Wildlife Reserve (VIDEO)."

WATCH: Authorities Establish New Roadblock at #Malheur National Wildlife Reserve (VIDEO)

Something's happening.

Here's my earlier entry, "LATEST: Malheur Holdouts Say the FBI Has Cut Their Phone and Internet Communications."

Not sure what's going on, although authorities towed a silver van out of the refuge.

Watch, via the Portland Oregonian:



Expect updates...

LATEST: Malheur Holdouts Say the FBI Has Cut Their Phone and Internet Communications

I'm not sure what's up?

Sounds like the FBI's gonna try to smoke 'em out today, although Anderson and co. should be okay as long as the beer and cigarettes holdout.

At the Portland Oregonian, "Oregon standoff: Most phone and Internet service for occupiers ends, supporter says":
BURNS -- As the anti-government standoff at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge entered its 30th day, the remaining occupiers claimed many of their phone lines no longer worked.

The four holdouts awoke to discover that many lost phone and Internet service overnight, according to Greg Whalen, a Nevada supporter who said he had been in contact with the armed protesters. They have refused to leave the refuge until they are guaranteed they won't be arrested.

The occupiers have produced several online videos detailing their stance, but their account has been quiet since Saturday evening. At the time, they vowed their fight would continue.

Whalen said one of the protestors, Sean Anderson, was able to make a call this morning using a cell phone without Internet to say his other phone, with Internet access, was no longer working. Calls by The Oregonian/OregonLive to Anderson ended with an automated message saying the user was not available.

Anderson, 47, is encamped at the refuge with his wife, Sandy Anderson, 48, of Riggins, Idaho, and two other men: David Fry, 27, of Blanchester, Ohio and Jeff Banta, 46, of Elko, Nevada.

Fry relayed a similar account of the morning's events to OPB.
Expect updates...

VIDEO: How the Ambush That Resulted in LaVoy Finicum's Death Unfolded (SLOW-MOTION ZOOM)

Watch, at the clip below.

Plus, still more at the Portland Oregonian, "Oregon standoff: LaVoy Finicum's family disputes police version of confrontation":

ST. GEORGE, Utah —The family of Robert "LaVoy" Finicum said the occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon was nearing a peaceful end when he was shot and killed by police, and they disputed the official account of the confrontation.

In their first public statement since the FBI released video showing Finicum's death as police tried to arrest the occupation leaders, his family said they saw his actions in the video as "animated" but not threatening.

"We know that there are always at least two sides to every story," the family wrote, adding, "Like almost everyone else, we were not there, so we don't know exactly what happened."

The statement was sent to some media outlets Friday and obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive on Saturday. Todd MacFarlane, a Utah attorney representing the family, confirmed the statement was authentic.

The FBI released a 26-minute video leading to the arrest of five people and the death of Finicum, one of the spokesmen for the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. This video breaks down the key moments.

Finicum was shot by Oregon State Police officers during an attempt to stop and arrest the leaders of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation, then in its 25th day.

Aerial surveillance video released Thursday showed Finicum stopping his white truck when police vehicles appeared with lights on, then waiting several minutes before driving off at high speeds. Pursued by police, he tried to drive around a roadblock further down the road before crashing into a snowbank, narrowly missing a police officer.

He exited the truck alone into the snow. Police said he moved his hand several times toward a pocket that contained a loaded handgun before he was shot...
More.

I posted the family's statement late Friday, "Lavoy Finicum Family Releases Statement: Challenges FBI, Announces Funeral Services (VIDEO)."

If you missed it, click through at the link to read the Scribd document, c/o FOX News 13 Salt Lake.

'Extremist With a Death Wish' — Citizens for Constitutional Freedom Throw David Fry Under the Bus

At the Facebook page for the Citizens for Constitutional Freedom.

I don't see the post buried there, but you can read the screencap, via Twitter:

Citizens for Constitutional Freedom photo CZ180LkUEAMgQP1_zpsfefolczw.jpg

And here's what looks like is a more recent thread, "A CALL TO DAVID FRY TO STAND DOWN IMMEDIATELY":
I am calling on David Fry, once again, to LEAVE THE MALHEUR WILDERNESS REFUGE. David is one of five holdouts at the refuge. He was not a part of the original group to go to the refuge. He had no part in the great amount of social, legal and political work that Ammon and other people did in the years prior to the takeover of the refuge. David is a Johnny-come-lately who was a media disaster from the start due to his wild public rants.

I remember when I first read some mentions of David in the media shortly after he went out to the refuge. Initially, I thought that he may have just been a naive young man who said some dumb things off the cuff in social media and was being slammed for it by left-leading media outlets. I opened a dialogue with David to find out if the reports about him were true. If he was being inappropriately maligned in the media, I wanted to be able to defend him. But if he was truly an extremist who had infiltrated the ranks at the refuge, I wanted to see him removed from the compound for the sake of the good people of the Citizens for Constitutional Freedom (CCF). So I began an investigation.

David is in his late 20s. He believes in some very good foundational principles regarding issues of morality and freedom. However, David's worldview takes those principles and runs to the fringes. I don't believe that he is altogether mentally stable. He seems to have no sense of social propriety and sees every issue as either black or white with no layers of gray in the middle. Following my investigation, I spoke with David and told him that I felt that, even if his intent was good, his methods of communication were too extreme and would be damaging to the reputation of Ammon and the others at the refuge who did not share his extremist ideologies. I was in no position to tell him to leave the refuge, but I advised him that if I were in charge I would ask him to leave. I also recommended that if he was going to stay on at the refuge, at the very least - for the sake of the reputation of the others - he needed to stop making public statements on social media that were provocative. I recommended that if he wouldn't delete his previous inflammatory messages, to at least change their status from public to restricted.

David chose not to take any of my advice or counsel. Having worked for decades as a political strategist with a keen awareness of the psychology and propensities of the individuals I've worked with, I foresaw David as becoming a serious threat to Ammon's work and to the CCF as a whole. I sent numerous warnings to individuals I knew out at the refuge to ask them to boot David from the group. David later related to me that they had given him a firm warning that if he caused any more trouble that he would be asked to leave. But then more pressing matters began to rapidly accelerate over the next week and the issue of David Fry fell by the wayside.

Today, Ammon and other CCF leaders are in prison. LaVoy Finicum has been murdered. The militia has fled. And, to my shock and disgust, David Fry has become the self-appointed leader of a 5 person band of holdouts who are continuing to defy the FBI. They are armed and, at least as of this writing, they are determined to stay - come hell or high water. Up until yesterday, David Fry was simply a foolish young person with some socially inappropriate views. Today, David is putting the lives of other people at risk, as well as his own.

If any of the other members of David's party can see my words - PLEASE, abandon David and leave. He has become unhinged and seems to have a death wish. Yesterday he was screaming on video that the world was going to get to watch him get killed on live TV. Last night he sent out a Livestream of him and a few others smoking dope together. He is bringing shame upon the CCF and NO GOOD can come from following him.

David, if you continue to wield weapons and defy the federal authorities, they are going to kill you. For the love of God, lay down your arms and come out.

Jake Morphonios
Check for more at the Facebook page.

Saturday, January 30, 2016

'It feels like a zombie apocalypse' — Last Malheur Holdouts Hope Against Hope (VIDEO)

The "zombie apocalypse" is below, showing the mess of items left behind when most of the remaining militiamen hightailed it out of there, fearing a Waco-style incursion by the feds. Considering the massive convoy of vehicles into the refuge, and the enormous numbers of LEOs, that was probably the smart thing to do.

Now, though, Sean and Sandy Anderson, David Fry, and Jeff Banta are all of whom remain at the compound, and they're definitely not giving up. I've blogged the reasons a few times already. Fry's crazy. Sean Anderson's got a troubling criminal background and is probably looking at some major time behind bars. His online rants have been threatening. And there's been talk among the holdouts of "suicide by cop." And of course they're heavily armed. Something like 20 additional firearms were left behind in the panicked exodus of the militiamen on Thursday.

In any case, at the Portland Oregonian, "Oregon standoff: Last of the occupiers 'hoping for a miracle'":

BURNS -- Six miles beyond an FBI roadblock, the four remaining holdouts at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge huddled around a small fire Saturday and waited for divine intervention.

That's what Sean Anderson told his hometown sheriff, who called from Idaho County, Idaho, to ask if he could help. Anderson, 47, and his wife, Sandy, 48, remain encamped at the Oregon wildlife refuge with Jeff Banta, 46, of Elko, Nevada, and David Fry, 27, of Blanchester, Ohio.":

"I'm hoping for a miracle," Anderson told Sheriff Doug Giddings, who has been Idaho County's top law enforcement officer for eight years.

"I believe God put us here."

Their Saturday afternoon conversation was broadcast live on the Internet -- one of their only connections to the outside world. The video showed the four occupiers gathered beneath plastic tarps, sitting in lawn chairs next to a white truck.

"If we don't stand up 'til the end on this, then why did we come here in the first place?" asked Sean Anderson, who had recently moved with his wife to Riggins, a community of 400 people in Idaho County.

Giddings told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Saturday that he reached out to the Andersons to let them know their options. "I'm not speaking to him on behalf of anybody but me," he said, rebutting Sean Anderson's assertion that the sheriff was acting as an intermediary to the FBI.

"They pretty much are limited by the FBI to one decision, and that's to come out," Giddings said.

The four reiterated their key demand: assurances they won't face charges.

Until then, Banta said, "nothing's going to happen because we're just camping out."

The audio feed crackled as he squeezed a can of Coors Light in his hand. He started another sentence that Sandy Anderson finished. "We're armed but -- "

"We're always armed," the only woman at the refuge said...
Keep reading.

Plus, from Jennifer Dowling, at KOIN News 6 Portland, "Malheur occupiers: ‘All of us out or all dead’":
Near the refuge, a sign says “FBI Go Home” and roadblocks seal off 4 remaining occupiers — David Fry, Jeff Banta and married couple Sandy and Sean Anderson. They claim the FBI will let all but Sean Anderson go, and he believes it’s because of an online outburst:

“Don’t be afraid of those roadblocks, drive up there and shoot them. They are dishonorable, not following their oath.”

In a later clip, Anderson said he “thought that was the last day of my life and I was hoping American people would stand up.”

Ammon Bundy, through messages delivered first by his lawyer and now through a videotaped cell phone call with his wife Lisa Bundy, told the remaining occupiers to stand down and “go home to your families.”

But Sean Anderson rejected that plea from the now-jailed militia leader.

“Your husband and your brother-in-law and all your friends are in prison right now because they do what they want to do. I have to submit to people I don’t believe or trust. You say Ammon is directed by God. So am I.”
PREVIOUSLY: "They're Going to Murder All of Us!' — #Malheur Occupiers Livestream Siege at Wildlife Refuge (VIDEO)," and "WATCH: Sean and Sandy Anderson, Husband and Wife Occupiers at #Malheur, Post 'Last Dance' Video."

Plus, "Armed Militiaman David Fry, Among Last Holdouts at Malheur Reserve, Says He's Prepared to Die in Siege," and "'Bombastic, Paranoid, and Angry' — Update on David Fry, One of the Last Holdouts at Malheur Occupation."

WATCH: Wild Bill for America, Statement on Shooting Death of LaVoy Finicum (VIDEO)

Via Theo Spark.

It's an interesting discussion, which I agree with for the most part. Once LaVoy reached down, even if it was to the left side, which wasn't the side he kept a holstered weapon, the LEOs had reason to suspect a catastrophic threat to life.

And Wild Bill's discussion of the need for, and coming likelihood of, a massive campaign of civil disobedience is something I talk about every semester in my American government classes.

Watch:



PREVIOUSLY: "Last Holdouts Remain at #Malheur Refuge; LaVoy Finicum Protesters Roll Through Burns, Oregon (VIDEO)."

Last Holdouts Remain at #Malheur Refuge; LaVoy Finicum Protesters Roll Through Burns, Oregon (VIDEO)

Jennifer Dowling reports, for KOIN News 6 Portland:



More earlier report is here, "'Bombastic, Paranoid, and Angry' — Update on David Fry, One of the Last Holdouts at Malheur Occupation."

David Fry has uploaded a new "Defend Your Base" video to YouTube, indicating he's not ready to pack it in and wondering why he's not getting a deal from the feds. Listen, "Response to Ammon Bundy."

'Bombastic, Paranoid, and Angry' — Update on David Fry, One of the Last Holdouts at Malheur Occupation

This guy's not only a freakin' loon, he's a raving anti-Semite.

Ammon Bundy should have cut this guy loose a long time ago, but Fry stuck around the headquarters, largely because of his affinity for LaVoy Finicum.

John Sepulvado has the update, at OPB, "How a Digital Friendship Created an Unlikely Holdout":

David Fry photo w2sveknoajujl8322b47_zpsa5kon2qm.jpg
David Fry’s online friendship with militant LaVoy Finicum led him to the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, where he is one of the last remaining occupants.

Ten days into the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, David Fry was looking forward to going home. Shunned by the alpha-male militant leaders in the camp, Fry — a skinny, bespectacled 27-year-old from Ohio — was waiting to talk to one person before he left.

“I want to say goodbye to LaVoy, but then I have to go home,” Fry told OPB the afternoon of Jan. 14. “I think I make some of the guys nervous here because of the bad things people are saying about me.”

Those “bad things” included criticism that Fry supported the radical terrorist group ISIS and had repeatedly praised Adolph Hitler in long, anti-Semitic rants. OPB had just published an article about Fry hacking into the federally owned computers at the refuge, revealing those details and others.

Finicum, who had just returned to the refuge after meeting with elected leaders in Irons County, Utah, had yet to meet with Fry. But the militant leader did message Fry to stay put until he could talk with other members of the leadership.

Still, Fry expected to return to his rural home outside of Cincinnati that weekend.

“Before my dad gets back from his vacation,” Fry said.

Less than two weeks later, LaVoy Finicum would be shot dead on the side of a country road in deep snow, and David Fry would be one of the last militant holdouts on the compound...
Still more.

PREVIOUSLY: "Armed Militiaman David Fry, Among Last Holdouts at Malheur Reserve, Says He's Prepared to Die in Siege," and "#Malheur: Last Four Militia Members Are 'Desperate', Heavily Armed — Won't Leave Without Guarantees."

Here's That Mile-Long Blaine Cooper Rap Sheet ICYMI

Frankly, a lot of the folks out at Malheur are rank losers. Criminals and losers and poseurs.

Blaine Cooper's never been in the military but all he wears are military camouflage fatigues. This Ain't Hell notes that he failed to correct a TV interviewer last year for being identified as a U.S. Marine. Cooper claimed he didn't want to embarrass the correspondent.

JJ McNabb has the screenshot on Twitter.

That's a freakin' long rap sheet:


Check McNabb's feed. She interviewed Cooper and has updates on the calls for outside reinforcements at the refuge.

WATCH: 'Ambushed and Assassinated' Protesters at Harney County Courthouse, Burns, Oregon (VIDEO)

Following-up from yesterday, "'Ambushed and Assassinated' — Residents in Burns, Oregon, React to Shooting Death of LaVoy Finicum."

Here's Jennifer Dowling, for KOIN News 6 Portland: