Militia takes over Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters

I get the impression that some people think our court system is designed to prove who is guilty or innocent and being fair while doing it.

The sad truth is, our court system is all about procedure, not who is right or wrong. The side that comes out ahead is the side that exerts the most pressure on the procedure process without making mistakes in the process. The process can be abused to come out ahead, such as outspending the opposition and their resources. Other times the process can be abused by testing a new law, as is being done to the Hammonds.

Notice I did not say which side wins the case, but which side comes out ahead. My personal opinion is the only ones that win in court cases are the attorneys. Win or lose, all of the attorneys involved feed their kid's college funds.

 

Oh, that is worth jail time!! Very good for voter turnout! Our big City voters will love it!!

Fuck!

 

Well, I don't know... I do know it's not good to wrestle with a pig.

 

Looks like they get all kinds of swag!

 

Can someone please answer a very basic question for me. How is it that starting a fire can cover up poaching? Isn't the evidence gone once you pick up the deer and remove it from the land where it can't be shot?

 

Maybe they shot the deer and then, found a fake decoy deer. Maybe a plush one? They put the plush deer in the forest. Then they burn the forest and everyone assumes that the burnt up plush deer was the deer that used to be on government lands. There actually is a fictionalized reenactment of this in a movie I once saw. I think it was called Bambi.

 

Keeping slaves is what people have traditionally done there for centuries too, but now it is a Federal crime, as is poaching and destroying evidence and recklessly endangering lives and arson for profit...

 

Almost half of a deer is guts, which are usually left at the site of the kill and cleaned up by crows and coyotes over the next week or so depending on the weather.

 

not only that, but the legs are also cut off and left behind. I came upon a spot a while ago that must have had 20 legs spread out and hundreds of pounds in gut piles. Its much easier to carry out only the parts you want to keep. A different time on a hike I found a deer that must have been shot a dozen times. nothing was carted away, it was just target practice for some asshole.

As far as this topic goes, I just don't know enough and don't feel like going down the rabbit hole to try and figure it all out. From a glance, seems like you have a few groups. 1) the original people who got arrested who likely were a bunch of peckerwoods, but got screwed by power hungry people too. And 2) the "patriots" whom I believe are very misguided but mostly have good intentions, 3) the law enforcement who should be commended for not turning this into some unneeded shootout.

 

A large forest wildfire is not going to destroy all of the poaching evidence that is laying on the ground, but it might cook some of it. A brush fire will do very little damage to poaching evidence. (the Hammond's are accused of setting a brush fire, not a forest fire)

If? The hunting guide had reported the poaching soon after the brush fire started? The Oregon Fish & Wildlife dept would have investigated the sight when it was safe to do so. They have enforcement officers on call to make quick responses to poaching reports. (a phone call to 800-452-7888 poaching hotline will get an investigator on sight fast, there is a $250 reward for turning in a deer poacher, if convicted) The dept. enforcement officers are a division of the Oregon state police, and could have charged the Hammond's with poaching. The only mention I see of poaching was made at the trial by the guide, not by any enforcement officer or govt. prosecutor.

Most people do not know this, but the Fish & Wildlife service has a very complete forensic lab similar to forensic labs used by state police and the FBI. Even if a fire damaged the poaching evidence, there is a lot they could have learned from it to help in a poaching trial.

The entire poaching topic, if it even occurred, is a blue herring topic.