United States Senate
RUBY RIDGE:
REPORT OF THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON TERRORISM, TECHNOLOGY AND GOVERNMENT INFORMATION
OF THE SENATE COMMITTEE ON
THE JUDICIARY
Subcommittee Members
Senator Arlen Specter, Chairman
Senator Fred Thompson
Senator Spencer Abraham
Senator Strom Thurmond
Senator Herb Kohl, Ranking Member
Senator Patrick J. Leahy
Senator Dianne Feinstein
Participating Senators
Senator Charles E. Grassley
Senator Larry E. Craig
Overview of the Events at Ruby Ridge
In 1986, a confidential informant for the Bureau
of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms ("ATF") met Randy Weaver at
an Aryan Nations Congress and initiated a relationship with
him. Weaver ultimately sold two illegally "sawed off"
shotguns to that informant in 1989. ATF attempted to
persuade Weaver to act as an informant within the white
supremacist Aryan Nations, but he refused. The United
States Attorneys' Office ("USAO") for the District of Idaho
then indicted Weaver. Weaver was subsequently arrested and,
following his arraignment, released on bond pending trial.
When Weaver failed to appear for trial on the weapons
charge, a bench warrant and later a grand jury indictment
were issued. The United States Marshals Service ("USMS")
then launched a seventeen-month investigation and
surveillance program designed to facilitate Weaver's arrest
on the weapons sale and for his failure to appear for trial.
On August 21, 1992, during a USMS surveillance
mission to the Weaver property, a firefight broke out
between several deputy Marshals and Kevin Harris, a friend
of Randy Weaver, and Randy Weaver's 14-year-old son, Sammy.
When it was over, Deputy United States Marshal William Degan
and 14-year-old Sammy Weaver were dead. The USMS sought
emergency assistance from the Federal Bureau of
Investigation ("FBI"), which immediately mobilized its elite
Hostage Rescue Team ("HRT") and transported them to Ruby
Ridge.
A week-long siege of the Weaver family ensued,
involving hundreds of federal, state and local law
enforcement officials. On the first day of that siege, an
HRT sniper fired two shots: the first hit Randy Weaver; the
second killed Randy Weaver's wife, Vicki, and injured Kevin
Harris. One week later, the Weavers finally surrendered.
Randy Weaver and Kevin Harris ultimately were tried on
numerous charges ranging from conspiracy to murder. They
were acquitted on all the major counts, including the
original firearms charge. Randy Weaver was convicted for
his failure to appear at trial and for committing an offense
(carrying firearms) while on pretrial release.
Federal Judge Dismisses Charges against FBI Sharpshooter