MAMMOTH FIND
AT OREGON ST.’S
RESER STADIUM
NORTHWEST/2A
51/37
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BASKETBALL/1B
THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2016
140th Year, No. 74
One dollar
WINNER OF THE 2015 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
HARNEY COUNTY STANDOFF: DAY 25
Occupiers l ee refuge
Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian via AP
Police offi cers block the turnout to Sodhouse Lane, which is the main road leading to the Malheur National
Wildlife Refuge headquarters, Wednesday near Burns. Authorities restricted access on Wednesday to the Oregon
refuge that was occupied by an armed group after one of the occupiers was killed during a traffi c stop and eight
more, including the group’s leader Ammon Bundy, were arrested.
Bundy urges last protesters to go home
Associated Press
BURNS — A day after
eight members of an armed
anti-government
group
were arrested, their jailed
leader on Wednesday urged
a handful of remaining mili-
tants to abandon the Oregon
wildlife refuge they have
occupied for more than three
weeks and where they are
now surrounded by federal
agents.
After militant leader
Ammon Bundy made his ¿ rst
court appearance in Portland
on Wednesday, his attorney,
Mike Arnold, read this state-
ment from his client: “Please
stand down. Go home and
hug your families. This ¿ ght
is now in the courts.”
It was unclear whether a
small remnant of Bundy’s
followers still holed up at the
Malheur National Wildlife
Refuge south of Burns was
ready to heed his advice.
The man who emerged
Wednesday as the leader of
the remaining occupiers was
later taken into custody
The FBI arrested Jason
More inside
• Offi cials applaud
enforcement action, but
take no credit
Page 2A
• Rancher killed in
standoff vowed to die
before going to jail
Page 8A
• Grant County resident
witnessed arrests of
occupation leaders at
FBI roadblock
Page 8A
Patrick, 43, of Bonaire,
Georgia, at a checkpoint
outside the refuge about 8:40
p.m., authorities said.
Duane Leo Ehmer, 45,
of Irrigon, and Dylan Wade
Anderson, 34, of Provo,
Utah, were taken into custody
by the FBI about 3:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, details began
to emerge about the confron-
tation Tuesday on a remote
highway that resulted in the
arrest of Bundy and other
leading ¿ gures in the group
of occupiers, and in the death
of militant Robert Finicum.
Multnomah County Sheriff’s Offi ce/Maricopa County Sheriff’s Offi ce via AP)
This combination of photos shows eight people involved in the occupation of
the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge who were arrested on
Tuesday. Top row from left are Ammon Bundy, Ryan Bundy, Brian Cavalier and
Shawna Cox. Bottom row from left are Joseph Donald O’Shaughnessy, Ryan Payne,
Jon Eric Ritzheimer and Peter Santilli.
Bundy followers gave
conÀ icting accounts of how
Finicum died. One said
Finicum charged at FBI
agents, who then shot him. A
member of the Bundy family
said Finicum did nothing to
provoke the agents.
A Pilot Rock man who
says he witnessed the
shootout says he heard
about a half-dozen shots but
didn’t see anyone get hit, and
that the shooting happened
quickly — over maybe 12
or 15 seconds. Raymond
Doherty, of Pilot Rock, told
KOIN-TV that he was about
100 feet back and couldn’t
see who speci¿ cally was
shooting. But, he added, “I
saw them shooting at each
other.”
There was no immediate
way to con¿ rm the accounts.
Authorities
refused
to
release any details about the
encounter or even to verify
that it was Finicum who was
killed.
Also on Wednesday,
a federal judge in Port-
land unsealed a criminal
complaint that said the armed
group had explosives and
night-vision goggles and that
they were prepared to ¿ ght
at the refuge or in the nearby
town of Burns.
Someone told authorities
about the equipment on Jan.
2, when the group took over
Malheur National Wildlife
Refuge, according to the
document.
Bundy and the seven
others are charged with
felony counts of “conspiracy
to impede of¿ cers of the
United States from their
See STANDOFF/8A
PENDLETON
One killed in
Recall petition ¿ led against Plute shooting near
If approved, would
Meacham
need 705 signatures
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
A petition was submitted
Tuesday to recall Pendleton
at-large City Councilor Al Plute.
Pendleton City Recorder
Andrea Denton said the petition
is currently under review. If
approved, it will require the peti-
tioner to collect the signatures of
15 percent of the local voters from
the last gubernatorial election,
which would be 705 signatures.
Pendleton resident Roesch
.ishpaugh ¿ led the petition and
has until April 25 to collect the
requisite signatures.
In his petition, Kishpaugh
accused Plute of failing to pay
Pendleton Plumbing in a long-
standing lawsuit.
“How can Pendleton citizens
assume Plute would be unbiased
in city business deci-
sions?”
Kishpaugh
wrote.
He also reasoned
that Plute should be
recalled because he
voted to institute a $5
street utility fee after
voters rejected a 5 cent
gas tax.
K i s h p a u g h Plute
declined to comment
Wednesday. He said he was
driving and couldn’t talk.
Plute was characteristically
blunt in his assessment of the
petition, calling it a “cheap shot”
that was backed by “cowards and
a bully.”
“I do not apologize for the
lawsuit and I don’t apologize for
the utility fee to get our roads
repaired,” he said.
Plute
couldn’t
remember having any
interactions with Kish-
paugh but suspected
more were involved
in the petition. He
declined to name who
else he thought was
involved in the petition
besides Kishpaugh.
Plute said Kish-
paugh’s claim about the
Pendleton Plumbing lawsuit was
false.
While a judge did order Plute
to pay more than $61,000 in the
One person is dead after a shooting early
Wednesday near Meacham.
Authorities have not identi¿ ed the victim.
No arrests had been made by press time.
Umatilla County District Attorney Dan
Primus said the event took place on the
Umatilla Indian Reservation. Tribal police
are the lead agency and members of the local
major crimes team are assisting.
Chuck Sams, communications director
of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla
Indian Reservation, reported Umatilla County
dispatch informed Umatilla Tribal Police
at 3:26 a.m. Wednesday of a report of shots
See PLUTE/3A
See SHOOTING/3A
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian