Its long so i am gonna do some serious, but quick snipping!
he Harney Basin (were the Hammond ranch is established) was settled in the 1870s.
have run over 300,000 head of cattle. developed a state of the art irrigated system (ab) In 1908 President Theodor Roosevelt, in a political scheme, create an Indian reservation around the Malheur, Mud & Harney Lakes
Later this Indian reservation (without Indians) became the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
(a) In 1964 the Hammonds purchased their ranch in the Harney Basin. The purchase included approximately 6000 acres of private property, 4 grazing rights on public land, a small ranch house and 3 water rights. The ranch is around 53 miles South of Burns, Oregon.
(a1) By the 1970s nearly all the ranches adjacent to the Blitzen Valley were purchased by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and added to the Malheur 187,000 acres and stretches over 45 miles long and 37 miles wide.
times by the FWS, the Hammonds refused to sell. Other ranchers also choose not to sell.
(a2) During the 1970s the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), in conjunction with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), took a different approach to get the ranchers to sell. Ranchers were told that, grazing was detrimental to wildlife and must be reduced. 32 out of 53 permits were revoked
and many ranchers were forced to leave. Grazing fees were raised
(a3) By 1980 a conflict was well on its way over water allocations
intentional diverted the water to bypassing the vast meadowlands, directing the water into the rising Malheur Lakes.
Thirty-one ranches on the Silvies plains were flooded. Homes, corrals, barns and graze-land were washed a
1990s the Hammonds were one of the very few ranchers that still owned private property adjacent to the refuge.
Wildlife Service (FWS) found out that the Hammonds obtained new water rights near the Malhuer Wildlife Refuge, they were agitated and became belligerent and vindictive towards the Hammonds.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service challenged the Hammonds right to the water in an Oregon State Circuit Court. The court found that the Hammonds legally obtained rights to the water i
(c) In August 1994 the BLM & FWS illegally began building a fence around the Hammonds water source. Owning the water rights and knowing that their cattle relied on that water source daily the Hammonds tried to stop the building of the fence.
The BLM & FWS called the Harney County Sheriff department and had Dwight Hammond (Father) arrested and charged with disturbing and interfering with federal officials or federal contractors (two counts, each a felony).
restricting access to upper pieces of the Hammonds private property. In order to get to the upper part of the Hammonds ranch they had to go on a road that went through the Malhuer Wildlife Refuge. The FWS began barricading the road and threatening the Hammonds if they drove through it. The Hammonds removed the barricades
(e) Shortly after the road & water disputes, the BLM & FWS arbitrarily revoked the Hammonds upper grazing permit without any given cause, court proceeding or court ruling
. As a traditional fence out state Oregon requires no obligation on the part of an owner to keep his or her livestock within a fence
federal judge ruled, in a federal court, that the federal government did not have to observe the Oregon fence out law. Those laws are for the people, not for them.
(f) The Hammonds were forced to either build and maintain miles of fences or be restricted from the use of their private property. so the cattle were removed.
(g) The Hammonds experienced many years of financial hardship
Hammonds had to sale their ranch and home in order to purchase another property that had enough grass to feed their cattle.
(i) In the early fall of 2001, Steven Hammond (Son) called the fire department, informing them that he was going to be performing a routine prescribed burn on their ranch. Later that day he started a prescribed fire on their private property. The fire went onto public land and burned 127 acres of grass. The Hammonds put the fire out themselves.
... To prevent the fire from destroying their winter range and possibly their home, Steven Hammond (Son) started a backfire on their private property. The backfire was successful in putting out the lightning fires
Hammond said: The backfire worked perfectly, it put out the fire, saved the range and possibly our home.
(j1) The next day agents went to the Harney County Sheriffs office and filled a police report making accusation against Dwight and Steven Hammond for starting the backfire.
Both Dwight and Steven were booked and on multiple Oregon State charges. The Harney County District Attorney reviewed the accusation, evidence and charges, and determined that the accusations against Dwight & Steven Hammond did not warrant prosecution and dropped all the charges.
(k) In 2011, 5 years after the police report was taken, the U.S. Attorney Office accused Dwight and Steven Hammond of completely different charges, they accused them of being Terrorist under the Federal Antiterrorism Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996.
mug shots were all over the news the next week posing them as Arsonists. Susan Hammond (Wife & Mother) said:
....endangered firefighters and other people in the area while burning valuable rangeland.
September 2006, Dwight & Susan Hammonds home was raided. Tfor evidence that would connect them to the fires.
(n) During the trial proceedings, Federal Court Judge Michael Hogan did not allow time for certain testimonies and evidence into the
. Much of the facts about the fires, land and why the Hammonds acted the way they did was not allowed into the proceedings and was not heard by the jury.
. Dusty Hammond (grandson and nephew) testified that Steven told him to start a fire. He was 13 at the time and 24 when he testified (11 years later). At 24 Dusty had been suffering with mental problems for many years.
(p) Judge Michael Hogan & Frank Papagni tampered with the jury many times throughout the proceedings, including during the selection process.
On the final day, Judge Hogan kept pushing them to make a verdict. Several times during deliberation, Judge Hogan pushed them to make a decision. Judge Hogan also would not allow the jury to hear what punishment could be imposed upon an individual that has convicted as a terrorist under the 1996 act.
(q) June 22, 2012, Dwight and Steven were found guilty of starting both the 2001 and the 2006 fires by the jury. However, the federal courts convicted them both as Terrorist under the 1996 Antiterrorism Act. Judge Hogan sentenced Dwight (Father) to 3 months in prison and Steven (son) to 12 months in federal prison. They were also stipulated to pay $400,000 to the BLM.
(cruel and unusual punishment). The day of the sentencing Judge Hogan retired as a federal judge.
(r) On January 4,, 2013, Dwight and Steven reported to prison. They fulfilled their sentences, (Dwight 3 months, Steven 12 months).
(s) Sometime in June 2014, Rhonda an appeal with the 9th District Federal Court seeking Dwights and Stevens return to federal prison for the entire 5 years.*
(t) In October 2015, the 9th District Court resentenced Dwight and Steven, requiring them to return to prison for several more years. Steven (46) has a wife and 3 children. Dwight (74) will leave Susan (74) to be alone after 55 years of marriage.
(u) During the court preceding the Hammonds were forced to grant the BLM first right of refusal. If the Hammonds ever sold their ranch they would have to sell it to the BLM.
(v) Dwight and Steven are ordered to report to federal prison again on
January 4th, 2016 to begin their re-sentencing. .
To date they have paid $200,000 to the BLM, and the remainder $200,000 must be paid before the end of this year (2015).
If the Hammonds cannot pay the fines to the BLM, they will be forced to sell the ranch to the BLM or face further prosecution.
Ran thro quick spell check your safe !
Ok, I learned a lot .......they have a grievance, but doing it this way isnt' how it is done. To be quite honest guys some cattle and land etc not world - my big deal here when learning what was going on was , there is so much copy cat cause of internet, this could blow up into all kinds of people, over all kinds of issues
and in a very dramatic way this is the same cr#p going on over Iraq etc etc --talking over stuff by using guns and threats
thats all we need now with all this other sh$t happening like every third day there are only a limited amount of resources.
In terms of copy cats, people with suciide vests dont care much. But for people that are pissed but do care somewhat about living or dying an example must be set here - so that the ones that are inclined to protest in this fashion, clearly see this stuff will not be tolerated.
It is also a problematic angle , if this goes on and on , those who want infamy fame and news coverage that too is gonna a problem
just mo
Letter to Harney County Sheriff - David Ward: http://bundyranch.blogspot.com/2015/11/letter-to-sheriff-ward-harney-county.html
Facts & Events : http://bundyranch.blogspot.com/2015/11/facts-events-in-hammond-case.html
Violations, Corruptions and Abuses: http://bundyranch.blogspot.com/2015/11/violations-corruptions-and-abuses-in.html
Conclusion: http://bundyranch.blogspot.com/2015/11/conclusion-in-hammonds-case.html
Letter to Government Official and Aware Citizens: http://bundyranch.blogspot.com/2015/11/hammond-
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