Oregon Standoff: Occupiers and sympathizers revealed

Oregon Standoff: Occupiers and sympathizers revealed
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Lynne Palombo | The Oregonian/OregonLive By Lynne Palombo | The Oregonian/OregonLive
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on March 26, 2016 at 7:38 AM, updated March 26, 2016 at 9:55 AM
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On Saturday, Jan. 2, 2016, an estimated 300 people peacefully marched through Burns in support of two Harney County ranchers headed to federal prison for burning public land.

At the end of the march, a small group of armed protesters traveled 30 miles south to seize the headquarters of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.

The refuge group claimed 100 participants, but early news reports counted perhaps only about 20 people actually occupying the refuge compound.

As the duration of the protest grew, so did the number of people who visited the refuge – some spending the night, others staying in town. Some came to occupy. Others wanted to see what the media coverage was all about.

The Oregonian/OregonLive has identified through news reports, photographs, social media posts and YouTube videos at least 108 adults and 20 children who spent any amount of time at the refuge during the 41-day occupation. We supplemented this information with public record searches, including court documents and property records.

The list is current as of March 25, 2016. The people on the list represent a range of viewpoints on the occupation and the federal government. They include both leaders of the occupation and sympathizers: like the rancher from Baker County who brought his family down so his 9-year-old daughter could see the event for herself. Or a Burns resident who said he met with the leaders at the refuge to make a more informed assessment of what was happening.

New indictments filed as recently as March 22 have brought the number of people charged in the occupation to 27. Prosecutors have not indicated whether they will name more defendants.

What we know about people at the refuge (statistics include only the adults):

-- Home state: Visitors came from 24 states. Oregon had the largest representation, with 30 people (28 percent). Idaho followed with 13 people (12 percent), then Nevada, Washington, Arizona and California. People came from as far away as New Hampshire and Florida.

-- Indicted: Most of the 27 protesters indicted so far are from outside Oregon. Oregon and Nevada both have four charged occupiers (15 percent). Arizona, Idaho and Utah are in a three-way tie for second place at three each (12 percent).

-- Women: 25 (23 percent)

--Average Age: 44

-- Employment: Among them were several ranchers, some retirees, a barber, a lawyer, a marketing director, a nurse, a property manager, a roofer, a truck driver and a tree worker.

-- Felons: At least seven have felony convictions, from murder to taking a vehicle without permission. One of the arrested, Jason Patrick, has a pending felony charge of making terrorist threats in Georgia.

-- Financial problems: 31 (29 percent) had a past bankruptcy, lien or judgment.

-- Military: At least 16 identified themselves as having served in the U.S. military. Ryan Payne and some of the others cited their military experience as one of the reasons they became involved in anti-government protests.

-- Cliven Bundy standoff: At least 18 (17 percent) were part of the standoff with federal rangers at Cliven Bundy's ranch in April 2014.

Carli Brosseau of The Oregonian/OregonLive contributed to this report.

-- Lynne Palombo

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