The occupation is in response to prosecution of two Harney County ranchers, Dwight Hammond Jr. and Steven Hammond, who were convicted of arson under a provision of a wide-ranging federal anti-terrorism law, according to the newspaper.
The feds decided to prosecute the Hammonds, who own about 12,000 acres in the Diamond-Frenchglen area of Oregon, after they used fire as a tool to combat invasive plant species on their ranch. The government accused the ranchers of allowing the fire to spread to federally owned land.
The Hammonds were indicted in 2010 on federal arson charges and faced sentencing as terrorists under the federal Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996.
The occupation appears headed for a confrontation with the Harney County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI.
Ammon Bundy Statement Regarding The Hammonds & BLM