‘Leave us alone’: Oregon town tired of standoff
BURNS: People who live in Burns, the small high desert town near a wildlife refuge that has been occupied by an armed group for a month, say they are sick of the disruption to their lives. “We just want to go back to the way we were,” Barbara Ormond, who owns a quilt store in downtown Burns, said Saturday. “We want everyone to leave us alone.”
Four people occupying an Oregon wildlife refuge held their position Saturday and posted live videos describing their situation and reiterating their demand that they be allowed to leave with being arrested. The jailed group’s leader, Ammon Bundy, and 10 others who were arrested earlier in the week remained in custody. Through his lawyer, Bundy on Saturday again called on the remaining occupiers to leave. The FBI has said it’s trying to resolve the situation peacefully. While the standoff that originated over federal land-use policies has led to filled-up hotels and restaurants as police, protesters and media have flocked to the area, locals say the conflict is upsetting and pitting neighbor against neighbor.
Community dissension
“It’s tearing the community apart,” said Bonnie Angleton, who owns a gift shop downtown. “I care about the people who live here.” Kate Marsh, an artist in town, said many residents work for the government, while others have their livelihoods depend on government agencies. “There is some dissension in the community,” Marsh said.
Authorities say Bundy, the leader of the group that seized the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, and others used the social media and other platforms to summon recruits to join their takeover. Court documents against the 11 occupiers under arrest show FBI agents have scrutinized social media postings, interviews and online talk shows that have been made during the standoff that began Jan 2.
Bundy and several other jailed leaders appeared Friday in federal court in Portland, where a judge denied their release. US Magistrate Judge Stacie Beckerman said Bundy, his brother Ryan Bundy and Ryan Payne pose a danger to the community, and she is concerned they would not follow orders to return to Oregon for criminal proceedings. The only woman arrested so far in the standoff, Shawna Cox, will be allowed to go home while her case makes its way through the court system. But Beckerman said that won’t happen until after the armed occupation ends. Ammon Bundy’s lawyer, Lissa Casey, said her client is not aligned with those remaining at the refuge near Burns and he wants to go back to his family. Bundy and his followers took over the refuge to demand that the federal government turn public lands over to local control. They have complained about what they say are onerous federal rules governing grazing and mining rights across the West. — AP