The family arson behind the rise of Oregon’s armed occupation

[G_j]

http://fusion.net/story/251275/oregon-armed-protest-steven-hammond-dwight-hammond/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=fusion8&utm_content=1&utm_term=fusion-newsletter-251525


-snip-

“I remember it pretty clearly. I just — I don’t really talk about it,” Dusty, now 27, told the court, recalling the events of 2001.

Using public court records, Fusion pieced together the story of the 139-acre blaze that led to the convictions of Dusty’s uncle Steven Hammond and grandfather Dwight Hammond in 2012. On Monday, the two men were forced to turn themselves into federal authorities after another court ruled their initial sentences didn’t meet mandatory minimum requirements.


The Hammonds’ release from prison is among the demands of the armed group of militants now claiming control of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. “We’re out here because the people have been abused long enough,” said Ammon Bundy, a leader of the extremist militant group, in a video posted on Facebook.

By law, arson on federal land carries a five-year mandatory minimum sentence. In their original sentencings, Steven was sentenced to 12 months, while his father Dwight was sentenced to three months. Prior to turning themselves in, an attorney for the duo distanced them from the armed occupiers, saying the occupiers do not speak for the family.

The Hammonds’ hunting trip ended in flames. Now, in addition to fueling a fresh debate over sentencing guidelines, it has blown open an ideological clash over the federal management of vast tracts of land in the West.

...much more...

[G_j]

1. a bit more,

(But for context, one must read the article)


“[Uncle Steven] started handing out boxes of Strike Anywhere matches and said we were going to light up the whole country on fire,” Dusty explained.

He was given instructions of what to do: everyone in the group would march out in different directions, lighting matches on the ground along the way. Dusty was to head out towards a highway in the distance, burning everything as he walked until he ran out of matches.