BURNS, Ore., March 8, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) ─ “I’m going to be lying on the ground with blood on the street or I’m gonna see the sheriff.”
Those were the words of Robert “LaVoy” Finicum, the Arizona-rancher-turned-Oregon-refuge-occupier just moments before he was shot to death by Oregon State Police officers during a Jan. 26 traffic stop.
Finicum’s defiant statement, as well as audio of his shooting, was captured on a never-before-seen cell phone video released Tuesday by prosecutors, who ruled Finicum’s shooting justified and “necessary.”
The video was recorded by Kanab resident Shawna Cox, a supporter of the Oregon occupiers and passenger in Finicum’s vehicle when they were confronted by the FBI and Oregon State Police. Authorities paired the newly revealed video with aerial surveillance video taken by police during the attempted roadblock.
Finicum’s supporters, including family members, have maintained the 54-year-old rancher was assassinated by law enforcement officers, who they claim fired hundreds of shots during the arrests.
Malheur County District Attorney Dan Norris and Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson, said a total of eight gunshots were fired during the traffic stop ─ six by Oregon State police officers and two by FBI agents.
Three of the shots were fired by OSP officers as Finicum’s vehicle sped toward a police roadblock.
The three other shots fired by Oregon State Police struck Finicum in the torso, mortally wounding him.
Of the shots reportedly fired by the FBI, one struck the roof of Finicum’s vehicle, but the other round was unaccounted for.
The revelation that FBI agents had opened fire during the confrontation came as a surprise, according to Deschutes County Sheriff Shane Nelson.
Nelson said the agents did not initially divulge their actions and we’re now being investigated for their role in the shooting.
To see the newly released video, please click on the video player below.
GOD help us all
8 shots fired, total? That is either a gross math mistake or a blatant lie. Dozens sounds more like the truth.
The other sounds are the flash bangs that can be heard and seen on the video.
There is something fishy going on with the story the officers told, but if you go to about 5:40 in the video, his hands are no longer up, he turns, and it looks like his left hand drops and elbow goes out like hes pulling back his coat to get ready to draw a weapon. I see it as a shame because all he had to do was eat snow, just face plant, and they wouldn’t have shot him. It wasn’t until his hands dropped somewhere other than the air that crap went down.
At 5:30 in the clip you hear at least 2 shots fired when his hands are up with at least one blowing out a window he is directly in front of. Officers are the only ones to fire and were absolutely not in the right to open fire on a man with his hands up. Period they already had fired at him before he did any reaching for any supposed weapon (which if you look at any of the pictures of the man of which there are hundreds he carried one pistol on his right hip in a long holster. I doubt he was reaching for a gun but I can bet he was wounded by those first shots before he was any real distance from the vehicle.
How many time’s have the police been forced to shoot a man for using his vehicle as a deadly weapon against them? In fact, law enforcement agencies will always shoot them when they are coming at high speed towards their road blocks. But in this case, even then they didn’t. It took Lavoy repeatedly telling them to shoot him, and then him reaching for his pocket (which btw is where he had a loaded 9mm). Lavoy was hell bent on committing suicide by cop, and he got his wish. He refused to follow police instructions time after time, and shame on him for putting those other three passengers in harms way. Thanks to law enforcement for serving and protecting us from Lavoy. Nobody needs these anti government vigilantes running amuck.
How many time’s have the police been forced to shoot a man for using his vehicle as a deadly weapon against them? In fact, law enforcement agencies will always shoot them when they are coming at high speed towards their road blocks. But in this case, even then they didn’t. It took Lavoy repeatedly telling them to shoot him, and then him reaching for his pocket (which btw is where they found a loaded 9mm). Lavoy was hell bent on committing suicide by cop, and he got his wish. He refused to follow police instructions time and time again. And shame on him for putting those other three passengers in harms way the way he did. Thanks to law enforcement for dealing with this nut job, and protecting us from the Lavoy’s of the World. Nobody needs these anti government vigilantes running amuck.
Agreed.
Anti-government vigilantes founded this country. Those officers had no reason to stop the man. He was going to a meeting ABOUT the whole situation in the first place. Even during times of open war, you don’t strike the peace negotiators down, and especially not while on the way to a peaceful resoltion. Is that what is was for sure? Nobody will ever know now. This was cruelty and torture. Something I’m sure the US abolishes *Gitmo*cough…