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ASSOCIATED PRESS
LaVoy Finicum, a rancher from Arizona, spoke to the media after members of an armed group along with several other organizations arrived at the at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Ore. on Jan. 9.
BURNS, Oregon » A member of an armed anti-government group who was killed in a traffic stop in Oregon vowed a few weeks ago that he would die before spending his life behind bars.
LaVoy Finicum, a 55-year-old rancher from Cain Beds, Arizona, died Tuesday after law enforcement officers initiated the stop near the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in southeastern Oregon.
It’s unclear what happened in the moments before the shooting, or if Finicum or any of the other activists involved exchanged gunfire with officers. Authorities wouldn’t say how many shots were fired.
Eight occupiers were arrested, including group leader Ammon Bundy.
Finicum also was a leader of the armed group that took over the refuge Jan. 2 to oppose federal land restrictions and object to the prison sentences of two local ranchers convicted of setting fires.
He was a prominent presence at the refuge and frequently talked with reporters. His affable but passionate demeanor made him a popular subject for on-camera interviews.
Finicum seemed to have made up his mind about how his role in the occupation was likely to end — with his death.
Just a few days into the occupation, he came barreling to the refuge entrance in a federal truck.
Rifle in hand, Finicum sat in the middle of the driveway, telling the reporters gathered around him that he learned there was a warrant for his arrest and he wanted to make it easy for federal agents to find him.
At the time, he said he didn’t know what the warrant charged him with, but he believed agents would try to arrest him soon.
“I don’t think it really matters. There’s enough things they could make a warrant for us, I believe,” he said.
Finicum said he had neither threatened nor harmed anyone during the occupation.
“I have grown up loving the fresh air. I love the elements. And this is where I’m going to breathe my last breath,” he said. “… I’m not going to spend my last days in a cell. This world is too beautiful to spend it in a cell.”
He then gave a message to his family: “And kids, if I don’t come, you know I love you and I’m proud of every damn one of you.”
The rancher was media-savvy and tried to popularize and monetize his political beliefs on his website, www.onecowboystandforfreedom.com. He used the site to sell his book, a 252-page paperback titled “Only by Blood and Suffering,” as well as T-shirts, bumper stickers and posters emblazoned with slogans like “Let Freedom Ring” and “Defend the Constitution Original Intent.”
He described himself as a longtime friend of Cliven Bundy, and he participated in the standoff with federal authorities over grazing fees at the elder Bundy’s Nevada ranch in 2014.
Finicum and his wife, Jeanette, raised dozens of foster children, though social workers removed the kids from the couple’s home a few days after the occupation began.
Finicum said the foster kids were the family’s main source of income.
Catholic Charities paid the family more than $115,000 in 2009 to foster children, according to tax filings. Foster parents are generally paid a small per-child amount by the government. It’s intended to reimburse them for the costs incurred in fostering. The money sometimes is disbursed through nonprofit partners.
Boone reported from Boise, Idaho.
No sympathy for the one who planned this ‘suicide by cop’ incident, though I do feel sorry for his family, that he would choose to leave them this way.
He had his hands up and was shot in the face. Execution is more like it.
Where did you get that?
nonsense
From Finicum’s mouth to God’s ear.
Watch out for the copycats.
Sad he had to die for his convictions, right or wrong. There are no details on what ensued nor how he died. Very few of us can say we are willing to die in the interest of our convictions. Will not honor him or vilify his demise. Sad for his family left behind. The last paragraph may shed some light on his true being, taking money from the Government and then showing his truer self??
Bonnie and Clyde lives on.
“Finicum said the foster kids were the family’s main source of income.” They were also his labor force.
(SA, it’s spelled C-A-N-E BEDS, AZ. )
According to his daughters twitter feed he was shot in the face while he had his hands up.
Was the daughter actually at the traffic stop to witness this?
nonsense
We all need to wait before rendering judgment. Anybody remember the aftermaths of Waco and Ruby Ridge? Lots and lots of blame (but sadly, little or no responsibility) to go around. It’s also good to remember that the Oklahoma City federal building bombing was the eventual price paid for the Branch Davidian (Waco) fiasco.
I’m guessing that these are all Trump supporters who want to “make America great (white) again”.