Ruby Ridge standoff
The Ruby Ridge standoff was the siege of a cabin occupied by the Weaver family in Boundary County, Idaho, in August 1992. On August 21, deputies of the United States Marshals Service (USMS) came to arrest Randy Weaver under a bench warrant for his failure to appear on federal firearms charges after he was given the wrong court date.[1] The charges stemmed from Weaver's sale of a sawed-off shotgun to Kenneth Fadeley, an ATF informant, who had induced him to modify the firearm below the legal barrel length.[2] This transaction was recorded and presented to the court. Although Weaver's court date was rescheduled to a day later than originally assigned, he was not notified of the change and consequently missed the hearing.[1]
During a surveillance operation, U.S. Marshal Art Roderick shot Weaver's dog when it ran at them and then pointed his rifle at Weaver's 14-year-old son, Samuel, who was armed.[3] Samuel fired back at the marshals, and was shot in the back and killed by the team. In the ensuing exchange of fire, Weaver's friend Kevin Harris shot and killed Deputy Marshal William Francis Degan Jr. Weaver, Harris, and members of Weaver's immediate family refused to surrender. The Hostage Rescue Team of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI HRT) became involved as the siege was mounted. In the standoff, FBI sniper Lon Horiuchi shot Weaver, then shot Harris, but the second shot also hit and killed Weaver's wife Vicki.[4] The conflict was ultimately resolved by civilian negotiators, including veteran activist Bo Gritz, who eventually convinced them to surrender. Harris surrendered and was arrested on August 30; Weaver and his three daughters surrendered the next day.
In the aftermath of the siege, Weaver was acquitted of all charges.[5] Weaver sued the federal government and was given $3.1 million in a settlement.[6][7] Despite the ATF not participating in the siege, this incident has led many to criticize the ATF and how it chooses to carry out enforcement.[8][9]
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