Key things to know about the militia standoff in Oregon

One of the protesters occupying a national wildlife refuge in OR says the ultimate goal is to turn the land over to local authorities so people can use it free of federal oversight.

Armed protesters continue to occupy a building at a national wildlife refuge in a remote part of OR as they argue that a father and son who are headed back to prison for arson on federal lands are being sent there unfairly.

LaVoy Finicum, Jon Ritzheimer and Blaine Cooper have announced their involvement in the militia standoff at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters in southeastern Oregon – Finicum in reports in Oregon media, Ritzheimer via social media and Cooper from reports in Oregon media as well as social media. “But they very well know that this is wrong, along with all their neighbors and the other ranchers in the area”.

Dwight Hammond addressed more than 100 protesters who marched through the streets of Burns, Oregon to his house.

The Southern Poverty Law Center said in a report on the earlier Bundy standoff that the militiamen and the federal land-return movement are part of the same spectrum. Dwight Hammond, 73, and Steven Hammond, 46, said they lit fires on federal land in 2001 and 2006 to reduce the growth of invasive plants and protect their property from wildfires.

A judge said in October that their terms were too short and ordered them back to prison.

Both men were ordered back to prison for four years each.

Bundy said that while the occupiers, who included his brother Ryan Bundy, were not looking to hurt anyone, they would not rule out violence if police tried to remove them, the Oregonian reported.

CNN law enforcement analyst Art Roderick, a retired us marshal who investigated anti-government militias for years, warned that Bundy’s call for supporters to join him might “turn into a bad situation”. In a statement captured on video, Bundy said Sunday that his group was “prepared to be out here for as long as need be” and would leave only when the people of Harney County “can use these lands as free men”. While ranchers and others complain of onerous federal rules, critics of the push for more local control have said the federal government should administer the public lands for the widest possible uses, including environmental and recreation. Bundy is one of the armed group that has taken over the refuge. Police also didn’t give out the name of the officer injured, but said Monday morning she is recovering from the ankle wound. Amanda Peacher, a reporter for Oregon Public Broadcasting, reported that the men had entered a building at the refuge that was unstaffed over the weekend.

A lawyer for the Hammonds sought to distance his clients from Bundy and his armed band, saying they did not speak for the family. The biggest difference since the takeover is the undercurrent of worry, he said. “I mean, they could have took the courthouse here in town”.

“This refuge here is rightfully owned by the people, and we intend to use it”, he said, adding that they plan to assist ranchers, loggers, hunters and campers who want to use the land. They plan to stay there for “years”, according to spokesperson Ammon Bundy, and they’re willing to fight to the death.

Ammon Bundy told ABC News on Monday that members of his group were armed. They went to the wildlife refuge Saturday evening following a rally in Burns to support the ranchers.

But Bundy and his followers do not represent the Hammonds.

No employees were inside the building when protesters broke in, officials said.

I struggle to understand what any of that has to do with the fact that the Hammonds committed arson, illegally burning 130 acres in what the government said was an attempt by the Hammonds to cover up their poaching.

Beth Anne Steele, an Federal Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman in Portland, said Saturday that the agency was aware of the situation at the national wildlife refuge. The militia is led by Ammon Bundy. Harney County Sheriff David Ward said authorities from several law enforcement organizations were monitoring the situation.