FBI agent indicted in Oregon refuge standoff shooting

Accused of lying about firing at Robert “LaVoy” Finicum in 2016

[img]http://twt-thumbs.washtimes.com/med...70b0c5f3181b8ac00e7c6c0cf583b25466ff9b82[/img]

By - Associated Press - Tuesday, June 27, 2017

PORTLAND, Ore.— An FBI agent has been indicted on accusations that he lied about firing at a rancher in 2016 when officers arrested leaders of an armed occupation of a federal wildlife refuge in rural Oregon.

Sources familiar with the case say the agent will face allegations of making a false statement with intent to obstruct justice, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported Tuesday.

The indictment stems from more than a yearlong investigation by the U.S. Justice Department inspector general. The agent will be identified when summoned to appear Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Portland.

Authorities moved in on Ammon Bundy and other leaders as they were driving in two vehicles from the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge to a meeting on Jan. 26, 2016.

The Deschutes County sheriff said that as Robert “LaVoy” Finicum left his truck, an FBI agent shot twice at Finicum, though none of the hostage team members said they discharged their firearms. The county sheriff’s office was tasked with investigating the Finicum shooting.

The FBI agent’s bullets didn’t hit Finicum, 54, an Arizona rancher who was the spokesman for the takeover near Burns in Harney County.

State police troopers then shot Finicum three times after he emerged from his truck and reached for his inner jacket pocket, where police said he had a loaded 9mm handgun.

One bullet pierced his heart, an autopsy found.

The Oregon investigators determined that one agent fired at Finicum’s pickup, hitting it in the roof and missing on the second shot. Federal law forbids “knowingly and willfully” making any false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or representation or concealing information.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Gorder Jr. revealed in court papers last year that a grand jury was reviewing the FBI actions.

Less than two months after the shooting, the FBI acknowledged that a federal agent was under investigation for firing shots, and four other members of his FBI team were under investigation for covering up the gunshots. The status of the investigation into the other FBI team members is unclear.

It’s not clear if the indicted agent is on leave or has been dismissed from the job. The hostage team is part of the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group, based out of Quantico, Virginia.

U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams in Oregon has scheduled a news conference Wednesday afternoon at the federal courthouse. His spokesman, Kevin Sonoff, declined comment. Portland’s FBI spokeswoman Jennifer Adams said she was unaware of the matter.

I don't expect much to happen. Years ago, Lon Horiuchi was charged with manslaughter in the shooting death of Vicki Weaver. The feds took over the case, saying it was a federal matter, and the case was dropped.

Onward and upward,
airforce

At least something is happening. We need more lawyers to do this stuff civil suit.

On that note...

I'm sorry folks, I've been real inactive. Been doing lawyer shit. I'm arguing in court all this week. In one of my cases we're suing a county government. Waiting to hear back on a demurrer hearing, judge hasn't made a ruling yet.

Maybe in 3ish years after I'm better experienced and can pay the bills I can help with some of this stuff.

Did you already pass your bar exam? I thought you had another year to go.

Onward and upward,
airforce

LaVoy Finicum shooting: FBI agent indicted for alleged false statements


By Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

The Oregonian/OregonLive

Update: FBI agent faces 5-count indictment in Finicum shooting investigation

An FBI agent has been indicted on federal accusations that he lied about firing at Robert "LaVoy" Finicum last year as police arrested the leaders of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation.

The agent will face allegations of making a false statement with intent to obstruct justice, according to sources familiar with the case.

The indictment stems from a more than yearlong investigation by the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Justice. The agent will be identified when he's summoned to appear in U.S. District Court in Portland at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Investigators said a member of the FBI's elite Hostage Rescue Team fired at Finicum as his 2015 Dodge pickup truck crashed into a snow bank at a roadblock on U.S. 395. Finicum had just sped away from a surprise traffic stop on the rural highway as the occupation leaders traveled off the refuge to a community meeting Jan. 26, 2016.

The agent's bullets didn't hit Finicum, 54, an Arizona rancher who was the spokesman for the armed takeover of the federal sanctuary near Burns in Harney County. Moments later, state police troopers shot Finicum three times after he emerged from his white truck and reached for his inner jacket pocket, where police said he had a loaded 9mm handgun. One bullet pierced his heart, an autopsy found.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Gorder Jr. revealed in court papers last June that a grand jury was reviewing the FBI actions. Gorder was explaining the government's desire to keep its memorandum about the inspector general's investigation out of the hands of defense lawyers representing other occupation leaders on federal conspiracy charges.

The FBI and state police had moved in on Ammon Bundy and other key figures as they were driving in two vehicles from the refuge to a meeting in John Day. Finicum initially stopped but then raced off from police, and less than a minute later swerved into the snow to avoid the roadblock set up by FBI and state police.

As Finicum left his truck, an FBI agent shot twice at Finicum, though none of the hostage team members admitted to discharging their firearms, the Deschutes County sheriff alleged. The county sheriff's office was tasked with investigating the Finicum shooting.

The Oregon investigators concluded that one agent fired at Finicum's truck, hitting it in the roof and missing on the second shot. A state trooper later described to investigators seeing two rifle casings in the area where the FBI agents were posted. But detectives called to investigate didn't find the casings, police reports indicated.

Federal law prohibits "knowingly and willfully'' making any false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or representation or concealing information.

Less than two months after the shooting, the FBI acknowledged that a federal agent was under investigation for firing shots and four other members of his FBI team were under investigation for covering up the gunshots. The status of the investigation into the four other FBI team member is unclear.

At a news conference in March 2016, Portland's-then FBI Special Agent in Charge Greg Bretzing told reporters, "The question of who fired these shots has not been resolved.''

It's unclear if the indicted agent is on leave or has been dismissed from his job. The hostage team is part of the FBI's Critical Incident Response Group, based out of Quantico, Virginia.

Oregon's U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams has scheduled a news conference later Wednesday afternoon at the federal courthouse. His spokesman Kevin Sonoff declined any comment, and Portland's FBI spokeswoman Jennifer Adams said she was unaware of the matter.

The indictment follows two federal trials against refuge occupiers accused of conspiring to impede U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management employees from doing their work at the refuge through intimidation, threat or force.

Ammon Bundy, older brother Ryan Bundy and five other defendants were acquitted last fall of conspiracy and weapons charges. A second trial of four other occupiers resulted in split verdicts earlier this year, with defendants Jason Patrick and Darryl Thorn convicted of conspiracy and others convicted of damaging government property and misdemeanor charges, including trespass.

Finicium's widow, Jeanette Finicum, has said she plans to sue Oregon State Police and the FBI for civil rights violations in her husband's death. The suit will allege that state police and the FBI used excessive force in the confrontation that could have ended peacefully and that improper police procedures and lack of communication between state police and FBI agents at the scene contributed to his death, her lawyer said.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com
503-221-8212
@maxoregonian

LaVoy Finicum shooting: FBI agent faces 5-count indictment


By Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com

The Oregonian/OregonLive

An FBI agent accused of lying about firing two shots at Oregon standoff spokesman Robert "LaVoy" Finicum faces a five-count indictment, charging him with three counts of making a false statement and two counts of obstruction of justice.

W. Joseph Astarita, 40, dressed in a dark pinstriped suit, white dress shirt and red-and-blue striped tie, made his first appearance on the indictment Wednesday in a packed federal courtroom, with heightened security inside and in the corridors of the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse.

A lawyer standing beside Astarita entered not guilty pleas on his behalf to all charges. Astarita will remain out of custody pending trial.

Astarita is accused of firing twice at Finicum but missing him as Finicum emerged from his white truck after swerving into a snowbank to avoid a law enforcement roadblock on U.S. 395 in Harney County.

Finicum had sped away from a state police and FBI stop moments earlier as authorities tried to arrest leaders of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge occupation on Jan. 26, 2016. As he crashed in the snow, Finicum's truck nearly struck another FBI agent, police said.

The indictment says Astarita, who served as a member of the elite FBI Hostage Rescue Team, "falsely stated he had not fired his weapon during the attempted arrest of Robert LaVoy Finicum, when he knew then and there that he had fired his weapon.''

Astarita is accused of lying to three supervisory FBI agents, concealing from Oregon investigators that he fired his weapon and failing to alert the FBI's Shooting Incident Response Team about his shooting as required.
Former FBI agent indicted for allegedly lying about firing at LaVoy Finicum

"Defendant acted with the intent to hinder, delay and prevent the communication of information from the Oregon State Police to the Federal Bureau of Investigation relating to the possible commission of a federal offense,'' the indictment says.

The criminal indictment stems from an 18-month-long investigation by the inspector general of the U.S. Department of Justice.

Defense lawyer Alison Clark represented Astarita during the two-minute hearing but told the court that Astarita expects to obtain his own local attorney. U.S. Magistrate Judge Janice M. Stewart set a trial date for Aug. 29. Assistant U.S. Attorney Pamala Holsinger estimated a trial would last a week.

The indictment will likely cast a shadow on the highly trained FBI Hostage Rescue Team and fuel Finicum supporters and groups fighting government control of public land.

Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz, working with the Deschutes County Major Incident Team, conducted the investigation. A Deschutes County sheriff's detective who was involved in the investigation attended the court hearing.

Oregon's U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams held a news conference after the hearing, standing with Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson, Oregon State Police Superintendent Travis Hampton, Special Agent-in-Charge Michael Tompkins of the Office of the Inspector General and Holsinger, the U.S. Attorney's Office chief criminal prosecutor.

Williams said Astarita's alleged actions don't call into question earlier investigation findings that Oregon State Police were justified in using deadly force against Finicum.

Sheriff Nelson credited his investigators for "going where the evidence led'' and discovering the the FBI shots. Nelson, though, said he was "disappointed and angry'' that the FBI Hostage Rescue Team's actions "damage the integrity of the entire law enforcement profession.''

The sheriff also criticized the FBI for failing to place the agent and his fellow Hostage Rescue Team members on paid leave after he and investigators traveled to FBI headquarters over a year ago. They briefed the FBI's then-Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, now acting director, about their findings and potential criminal liability, he said.

"Today's indictment will ensure that the defendant and hopefully any other HRT members will be held accountable through the justice process,'' Nelson said.

U.S. attorney's statement

The FBI agent's bullets didn't hit Finicum, 54, an Arizona rancher who was one of the leaders of the Jan. 2 takeover of the federal bird sanctuary near Burns.

Moments later, state troopers shot Finicum three times after he emerged from his white truck at the roadblock and reached for his inner jacket pocket, where police said he had a loaded 9mm handgun. Bullets struck him in the back and one pierced his heart, an autopsy found.

The FBI and state police had moved in on Ammon Bundy and other key occupation figures as they were driving from the refuge to a community meeting about 100 miles away in John Day.

Oregon investigators concluded that Astarita fired twice at the truck, hitting it in the roof and missing on the second shot. A state trooper later described seeing two rifle casings in the area where the FBI agents were posted. But detectives who arrived later at the scene to investigate didn't find the casings, police reports indicated. None of the members of the Hostage Rescue Team acknowledged the shooting, the investigators said.

The indictment follows two federal trials against refuge occupiers accused of conspiring to impede U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Bureau of Land Management employees from doing their work through intimidation, threat or force.

Ammon Bundy, his older brother Ryan Bundy and five other defendants were acquitted of conspiracy and weapon charges last fall. Two other co-defendants were found guilty of conspiracy after a trial this year. Others were found guilty of misdemeanor charges, such as trespass. Eleven other refuge occupiers pleaded guilty to the federal conspiracy charge.

"I'm encouraged. I'm thrilled that the grand jury came back with this finding,'' said Finicum's widow, Jeannette Finicum.

But she said she also has concerns about the lack of charges for the other four FBI agents at the scene with Astarita. She said she listened to the U.S. attorney's press conference and agrees that the agent should be considered innocent until proven guilty. She said she wished that same standard would apply to the Bundys and others, who have been incarcerated for more than a year awaiting trial in Nevada.

"The Finicum family applauds the U.S. Department of Justice for doing this. Nobody is above the law,'' said their lawyer, Brian Claypool. "The fact that the U.S. Department of Justice stepped in and investigated one of their own and said, 'You can't obstruct justice, you're not above the law' sends a very positive message. This is about upholding public trust and preserving the integrity of any investigation involving a death at the hands of law enforcement.''

The Finicum family has put Oregon State Police and the U.S. government on notice of its intent to file a civil claim alleging excessive force in Finicum's death. No lawsuit has been filed yet, but the agent's indictment will only serve to support the civil case, Claypool said.

Claypool said he believes that the agent didn't admit shooting at Finicum when he did because the timing of the shots wasn't justified. When Finicum crashed into the snowbank, he "was not posing a risk of serious harm'' and the shots escalated the situation, Claypool said.

Other law enforcement experts privately questioned whether the agent didn't admit he fired shots because he missed his target.

During the occupation trials, defense lawyers urged the judge to compel the government to turn over investigative records of the FBI's alleged misconduct. But U.S. District Judge Anna J. Brown said the FBI's actions weren't relevant to the conspiracy, weapons and other charges against Ammon Bundy and the others.

On Wednesday, federal officials wouldn't say whether Astarita is still working for the FBI or has been placed on leave or if any action has been taken against the other members of his FBI Hostage Rescue Team at the scene of the Finicum stop and shooting. An FBI spokeswoman also declined any comment.

Hampton, the Oregon state police superintendent, said he was discouraged that the FBI agent's actions may diminish law enforcement's reputation. He said the actions, however, don't represent the FBI or hundreds of others involved in the arrests of the occupation leaders.

When the investigation of the FBI's actions was announced last year, former FBI agents and criminal justice experts said they were stunned that an agent might lie about firing his gun. That the bullets missed their apparent target drew even more disbelief.

"Here you have one of the best trained units in the FBI. They're only supposed to shoot when there's an active threat. You would hope they would be accurate in doing so,'' said Michael German, a 16-year veteran of the FBI who now serves as a national security expert and fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice in New York University's School of Law.

"In the FBI, the most important thing is to tell the truth,'' said Danny Coulson, who served as special agent in charge of the FBI in Oregon from 1988 to 1991 before becoming the agency's deputy assistant director in charge of terrorism operations. Coulson was the first commander of the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team and was a deputy FBI director during the bloody 1992 shootout in Ruby Ridge, Idaho. He now runs a security consulting business in Texas.

A conviction for making false statements can result in a sentence of up to five years in prison. A conviction for obstruction of justice can lead to a sentence of up to 20 years, according to federal prosecutors.

-- Maxine Bernstein

mbernstein@oregonian.com
503-221-8212
@maxoregonian

Jun 29, 2017

News Section for Caravan to Midnight full interview with Gary Hunt


https://youtu.be/n2oI96kSi78

I do have another year. But I am third year practice certified. My boss introduces me but I do all the talking ;P

Well, cool! Most law school students here in Oklahoma get summer jobs working in McDonalds. Come to think of it, that's where a lot of the graduates end up working, too.

Onward and upward,
airforce

For the feds, lying about shootings is business as usual. Spcial agent Astarita is probably wondering why he was singled out.

Read the whole thing at the link.

Onward and upward,
airforce

Horiuchi was promotedfor killing Vicki while she stood behind a solid door holding an infant that was pulled too but not closed all the way. My point is the maggot did NOT have a clear shot. Unless he had a scope that let him see her through solid wood he could NOT SEE HER.

Furthermore it is my belief the Oregonian and Spokane Review papers are not as stand up as they were 75 to 100 years ago. They've gone the direction of the Fake news both in print and broadcasting.

Sheriff backs claims of FBI-lawbreaking in Oregon standoff

Documentary-makers release more evidence that raises questions

Bob Unruh

In a stunning development a year after the standoff at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, where two-dozen armed supporters gathered to protest the courts’ extension of sentences for two ranchers, a sheriff has backed claims of FBI misbehavior.

The declaration came from Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson just as FBI agent W. Joseph Astarita was pleading not guilty to three counts of making false statements and two counts of obstruction of justice in federal court in Portland, Oregon.

The FBI agent was accused of firing at the protesters, then picking up shell casings to conceal that fact and lying to investigators.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Oregon said Astarita falsely stated he had not fired his weapon during the attempted arrest of protester LaVoy Finicum, who was shot dead by another officer during the incident, “when he knew he had in fact fired his weapon.”

“Astarita also knowingly engaged in misleading conduct toward Oregon State Police officers by failing to disclose that he had fired two rounds during the attempted arrest,” the statement said.

Nelson said, as the Washington Times reported, that the actions by “multiple members of the FBI Hostage Rescue Team” had “damaged the integrity of the entire law enforcement profession, which makes me both disappointed and angry.”

Nelson said he told Justice Department and FBI officials, including now-acting Director Andrew McCabe, over a year ago about “possible criminal conduct” by some involved FBI Hostage Rescue Team agents.

And while the case against Astarita is in court, new evidence also is arising from the makers of an acclaimed documentary about the incident.

WND reported earlier on the armed standoff that has been variously described by opponents as “militia terrorism” and by defenders as rebellion against government tyranny.

The 41-day standoff ended in mass arrests after law enforcement fatally shot one of the occupiers.

The documentary is “American Standoff,” and while it aired previously on DirecTV, it can now be viewed in its entirety at this website. Among the people interviewed in the documentary is best-selling author and WND Vice President David Kupelian.

The “American Standoff” story starts with Dwight and Steven Hammond, Oregon ranchers who were controversially convicted and sentenced for setting a controlled land-management fire on their property that went out of control onto federal land. But after they served their sentences and were released, a judge – at a federal prosecutor’s insistence – ordered them back into court, where they were sentenced to further time in prison under an anti-terrorism law, even though there was no evidence presented that the ranchers had planned or engaged in terrorism in any way.

Sympathetic ranchers and others – encouraged by the federal government’s stand-down from a previous armed confrontation in Nevada two years earlier on the land of rancher Cliven Bundy – protested the new injustice and ended up staging an armed occupation of the refuge.

They succeeded in keeping federal officers at bay until they were finally taken into custody when police staged a highly dangerous highway stop of vehicles carrying the protesters and shot two men.

Ryan Bundy, one of Cliven Bundy’s sons, was injured, while LaVoy Finicum was killed.

Eventually, seven of the others who were arrested were acquitted of federal charges related to the standoff. The feds even dismissed charges against a self-described independent broadcaster, Peter Santilli, who documented the occupation near Burns, Oregon, but was accused by prosecutors of being part of the protest group.

However, one of the FBI agents was charged with serious infractions of the law for the final confrontation. So far, Astarita is the only FBI agent to be indicted.

In addition to the feature-length “American Standoff” documentary, director Josh Turnbow and his film-making crew have now produced a series of “Aftermath” short video segments that have been posted online.

In the first, Jeanette Finicum, the widow of LaVoy Finicum, explains how the government, after killing her husband, also canceled the lease she needed to continue her family’s ranching operation.

She said she has lawyers fighting to restore the lease.

And she said a wrongful death case is inevitable against the government after a certain legal time period passes.

She insists her husband had his hands in the air and was surrendering but “was murdered.”

“He was mowed down in cold blood.”

Then, the video explains, the federal agents were “caught on camera, picking up casings before the forensic team arrived at the site of the shooting.”

Also, the video shows, Finicum’s gun, which he reportedly had been reaching for, wasn’t found for eight hours after the shooting.

“How many people tended to his body without finding it?” the video asks.

See the footage of the first segment:

The rest of the videos are available online here.

Turnbow told WND the “Aftermath” series continues the stories of people affected by the standoff.

In addition to conducting in-depth interviews with nearly everyone involved on all sides of the conflict, Turnbow said he tapped WND’s managing editor, David Kupelian, to offer a journalist’s perspective and analysis.

“I think Josh Turnbow did a terrific job in ‘American Standoff,'” said Kupelian, “not just in fairly and sensitively presenting all sides of a complex and troubling situation, but in telling a riveting, deeply thought-provoking true story about today’s America.”

Kupelian said the documentary “captures the classic modus operandi of an oppressive government: Perpetrate injustice, provoking widespread public outrage, which always includes a small number of people who seriously overreact and, however well-meaning, do something illegal or irresponsible – and then portray them as the real problem, or in this case as ‘criminals’ and ‘terrorists.'”

He said the main provocation in the story was “convicting two Oregon cattle ranchers, a father and son team whose controlled burn on their own property had gotten out of control and migrated onto federal land, with arson under an anti-terrorism statute that mandates a minimum five-year prison sentence.”

“Even the presiding judge said such a severe and unjust sentence would ‘shock the conscience.’ Well, it did shock the conscience of a lot of other ranchers – and the Malheur standoff was the result,” he said.

Turnbow said he would like to find out what really happened and consider what the outcome should have been, especially with regard to the still-imprisoned ranchers serving a five-year “terrorism” sentence.

“We should be talking about it,” Turnbow says.

The larger issue at hand – federal control over land in the American West – continues to loom large.

The federal government is the largest landowner in the Rocky Mountain and Western states, owning contiguous parcels of millions of acres.

Conflicts between ranchers, who in some instances have owned and worked their land for generations, and a federal government seemingly always hungry for more, are common.

President Trump’s recent executive order to review the possibility of shrinking the boundaries of federal monuments could help defuse the longstanding tensions between America’s ranchers and the government.

See the trailer for “American Standoff”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo3AjozPUes&list=PLYtkcRpMOp8K_i785NBNcBM6fx_Gg9TX0&index=4

W.Joseph Astarita has hired a high-profile DC attorney.

Onward and upward,
airforce