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emphasis mine
Department of Public Safety Lt. Steven Schwartz, a 17-year department veteran, testified at the morning hearing that William and Morgan English wore patches that identified them as members of a group called Distorted….
He said he thinks the Englishes were aware of the rift between the Cossacks and Bandidos and they were there that day as a show of support for the Bandidos.
But under cross-examination from [the Englishes' lawyer Paul] Looney, Schwartz said neither he nor other DPS investigators were aware that the seven-member Distorted group existed before May 17…
Schwartz said they wore patches that said they support the Bandidos, so that tells him they are at least “somewhat involved in criminal activity.”
He said he saw nothing that day and has developed no subsequent evidence to show the Englishes are involved in criminal activity…..
Schwartz agreed with Looney that the Englishes were cooperative and agreed to talk to investigators after the shooting.
“He said they told police that one of their friends brought a gun with him, but they left it locked up in the car.
“Other than that, all we have is that they were merely present at a murder. Correct?” Looney asked.
“Correct,” Schwartz said.
Only two of the 177 bikers who were arrested on engaging in organized criminal activity charges remain jailed in McLennan County.
“I’ve got a couple of the widows that I speak to,” said Edberg. “You know, this is hard; this is a really hard time. They were regular guys. They had families and grandkids on the way.” And the sorrow is turning into bitterness, among other things. “It feels to us almost, like, they portrayed us as trash. Like, we don’t deserve any kind of respect. And that really hurts. I lost my fiancé [who was in a biker club] four years ago. These bikers, they’re all I know. They took care of me and my family. They held me up.”
Bostick went on to explain part of an hour-long video that’s been making the rounds on the Internet, silent surveillance footage from Don Carlos. One biker was tied and left under the care of a single SWAT member for over an hour before being let go—the cops’s inside man, said Bostick. Then, Bostick pulled up a 59-second cell phone video taken from inside Don Carlos. “If you listen to it, right off the bat, you hear tch-phff, tch-phff, tch-phff.“ That noise, he said, were the “sniper rounds with a suppressor. . . . They started pickin’ them off.” I listened to the video, putting my ear close to his phone. I think I heard it.
And there was this couple. When I asked what they were looking at, they said they were trying to figure out how many people were on top of the ALICO, a 22-story building towering over the main square. The suggestion was that there was police surveillance up there (somebody was up on the roof, that’s for sure). Possibly a sniper.
“Other than that, all we have is that they were merely present at a murder. Correct?” Looney asked.
originally posted by: TrueBrit
a reply to: jadedANDcynical
Questions:
1)
Precisely what are you suggesting may have happened in that shooting involving all the bikers, and who do you see as having started firing first?
I would still like to point out that this story still blurs the line between the parking lot and the restaurant; what was happening in the restaurant was a council of clubs meeting that had a thirty year peaceful record, meeting usually in Dallas or Austin. What happened in the parking lot was something between a biker brawl and a police massacre. But then 171 people, most of whom had nothing to do with the actions in the parking lot and were merely having brunch, were arrested and held on million dollar bails until they lost their jobs, and their vehicles and other property were seized as civil forfeiture, and even today they have to wear ankle bracelets at a cost of hundreds of dollars a month. Truly innocent bystanders. That is the part that upset me, and it is the part that gets ignored. I also think the restaurant owner was treated very badly by officials in Waco and run out of business for no reason.
2)
Which gagging laws have been enacted, and against which specific parties?
The order was written by McLennan County District Attorney Abel Reyna, who is among officials named in Clendennen's suit, and issued by Reyna's former law partner, District Judge Matt Johnson. The judge also has issued a protective order preventing public release of a surveillance video of the scene.
In granting the gag order, Johnson said he was acting to prevent pretrial publicity from influencing potential jurors.
The brief argues the court lacked specific findings to support its conclusion that publicity could taint the juror pool.
3)
Are you saying that from your read of it, the autopsy appears to show that many of those shot were shot at an angle which appears to denote sniper activity, rather than a straight shoutout, which is what was reported in the media at the time?
Boyett, 44, of Waco, was shot twice in the head and once in the abdomen. Both bullets to his head — one from the top and one from behind — penetrated his scalp and skull. The report says a medical examiner recovered a copper jacket base from one of those bullets. The second bullet to the head was not described. The gunshot wound to Boyett’s abdomen grazed him, leaving copper and lead fragments.
...
Campbell, 43, of Fort Worth, was shot once in the head, with the bullet entering through his chin, exiting and then re-entering through his neck. A medical examiner found five metal, large-caliber, intact bullets in Campbell’s vest pockets, the report says.
...
Jordan, 31, of Pasadena, suffered one gunshot wound to the head. The bullet traveled from back to front, slightly left to right and slightly downward. A severely deformed, medium- to large-caliber, partially jacketed projectile fragment was recovered from the right side of his head and a second, severely deformed, medium- to large-caliber, partially jacketed fragment was recovered from the right side of his neck.
...
Kirschner, 47, of Wylie, suffered a gunshot wound to his right thigh, one to the left knee and one in the left buttock. He also suffered a superficial cut to the right side of his neck, a scalp laceration and abrasions to his face, trunk and extremities.
Fragments of a small-caliber bullet were recovered from his left hip. The bullet traveled from back to front and downward. The bullet that struck his right thigh traveled downward, slightly left to right and slightly back to front. Fragments of a jacketed bullet were recovered from his thigh.
...
Rhyne, 39, of Ranger, suffered a gunshot wound to the left side of the neck that partially exited through his upper back and a gunshot wound to the lower abdomen, in addition to abrasions on his right hand.
The report concludes that Rhyne died as a result of the gunshot wound to the neck. That bullet traveled from front to back, left to right and downward, the report shows. Projectile fragments from both gunshot wounds, including copper-colored jacket fragments and white metal fragments, were submitted to the Criminal Investigation Laboratory, the report says.
...
Rodriguez, 65, of New Braunfels, was shot in the head and in the back. The projectile that was recovered on the left side of his head was not described in the report. The bullet went from front to back and slightly downward.
He also was shot in the right, mid-back. The projectile perforated a rib, his right and left lungs and his heart and exited through his left chest wall. That bullet traveled from right to left, back to front and upward.
...
Rodriguez, 40, of Allen, suffered one gunshot wound to the head and one in the back. The path of the bullet that struck his head was from front to back, right to left and downward. A severely deformed, apparently medium-caliber, jacketed bullet was recovered from the left side of the neck.
The bullet that struck the right side of his back went from right to left, downward and slightly back to front. A moderately deformed, apparently medium-caliber, jacketed bullet was recovered from the left side of his back.
...
Russell, 46, of Tyler, was shot once in the chest. A medium-caliber bullet was recovered from clothing adjacent to an exit wound on the right side of his back. On the base of the bullet is inscribed “15-08020” over “JU”, the report states. The bullet traveled front to back and downward and perforated his sternum, heart, right lung, vertebra and rib.
...
Smith, 27, of Keller, had two gunshot wounds — one to his upper back and one to his abdomen. The bullet in his back was described as a “medium-caliber jacketed projectile.” The bullet through his abdomen hit his right kidney and aorta before exiting.
...
Vehicle forfeiture documents state that when officers approached the restaurant during the shootout, a Waco police officer saw Jeff Battey and Ray Allen standing behind Twin Peaks “in a triangulated position” to Smith, who was lying on the ground about five yards away and was “gasping for air.” Both Battey and Allen were wearing Bandidos vests.
An officer noticed that Allen had a silver handgun in his hand and said it looked like Battey had been shot in his upper right shoulder, according to the documents.
...
Smith’s autopsy report does not specify which of the two gunshot wounds killed him.
Daniel Raymond Boyett died of a two gunshot wounds to the head. Both were made by copper jacketed bullets. One of the head shot was on top of the head and the other was to the back of the head.
...
There is no evidence that the bullets were fired at close range.
Someone tried to save Jacob Lee Rhyne’s life. He had bruising consistent with efforts to resuscitate him. He was shot in the neck and the back by copper jacketed bullets. He was also shot in the lower abdomen. The abdominal wound also came from a copper jacket bullet, His fatal wounds were not fired from close range.
...
Manuel Issac Rodriguez was shot twice, over the right eyebrow and the back. He appears not to have been shot at close range. He was shot with “apparent medium caliber, jacketed” bullets.
Matthew Mark Smith was shot in the back from a distance with a “markedly deformed, medium-caliber, jacketed projectile.” He was also shot in the abdomen.
Richard Matthew Jordan, II also died of a gunshot wound to the back of his head from a medium to large caliber, partially jacketed” bullet.
Richard Vincent Kirschner, Jr. died of three bullet wounds to his rear, lower extremities. He was also shot from a distance.
Jesus Delgado Rodriguez was shot in the face. A copper jacketed, slightly deforned, medium-caliber projectile” was recovered from his scalp. The base of the bullet was inscribed “with 15-8021 over CS.” He was also shot in the back.
Wayne Lee Campbell was shot in the face by a bullet that exited and reentered his chest.
4)
Were any of those shot by the fire from the elevated position, unarmed and not engaging in a fire fight in a crowded restaurant when they were shot?
Wayne Lee Campbell, 43, was shot in the top of his head. Among his tattoos was one on his chest that read, “Wayne and Bonnie Family Tree” with hands praying. He carried seven quarters, six dimes, two nickels and nine pennies in his pockets. He also carried five large-caliber bullets that had not been fired.
Jesus Delgado Rodriguez, 65, was shot in the head and back. He wore a metal U.S. Marine Corps tag around his neck, and a yellow and red bandana with “Grunt” written on it was tied around his forehead. In his pockets, he carried a pen, key ring, rubber band, piece of notebook paper, piece of toilet paper, lip balm tube, lighter, one $20 bill, a $10 bill and three $1 bills, and a quarter. He had a thin, gray beard tied into three ponytails. His tattoos included skulls, dragons, Chinese letters, Christian crosses and Marine Corps references, including military dog tags with “Rodriguez, J.D.” inked on his left foot. Media have reported he served in Vietnam and received a Purple Heart.
Daniel Raymond Boyett, 44, was shot in the back of the head and on the side of his stomach. Among his tattoos was one that read, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13.” He carried cigarettes, a lighter, a quarter, one nickel and two pennies. He wore a white metal necklace with a pendant and a yellow band wedding ring. He had a slight amount of methamphetamine in his system, according to the medical examiner.
Richard Matthew Jordan II, 31, was shot in the back of the head. He carried two black and yellow bandanas in his pockets, as well as a black and yellow skull patch. He also carried a pack of Altoids, assorted coins and five cartridges of ammunition. The fingers of his left hand were tattooed with “L-I-F-E.” On his right leg was “SATAN” and an inverted cross.
Richard Vincent Kirschner Jr, 47, was shot in the buttock, thigh and behind the knee. He died at a hospital.
Manuel Isaac Rodriguez, 40, was shot in the front of his head and in his back. He carried four quarters, one dime, two nickels and a penny in his pockets. He wore a white metal necklace with a pendant around his neck.
Charles Wayne Russell, 46, was shot in the center of his chest. He carried two lighters, a tube of lip balm, a raffle ticket, a broken wooden nickel, three $1 bills, 12 quarters, eight dimes, five nickels and 15 pennies. He also carried a plastic bag “full of a green leafy material.”
Matthew Mark Smith, 27, was shot in the stomach and the back. On his left foot was a tattoo of XII. He carried a yellow straw, some allergy medication and $6.15 in his pockets.
Jacob “Rattle Can” Lee Rhyne, 39, was shot in the neck and stomach. He wore a metal ring. He carried 12 quarters, two nickels and two dimes in his pockets. A medical examiner notes that he had marks on his chest indicative of someone having tried to resuscitate him.
But then 171 people, most of whom had nothing to do with the actions in the parking lot and were merely having brunch, were arrested and held on million dollar bails until they lost their jobs, and their vehicles and other property were seized as civil forfeiture, and even today they have to wear ankle bracelets at a cost of hundreds of dollars a month. Truly innocent bystanders. That is the part that upset me, and it is the part that gets ignored.
Anyhow, today's Australia has declared open war on 'bikees' who gather in any number, despite that there are no guns in Australia save for in the hands of those who confiscated them all.
First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.
Waco police (including a SWAT team) and officers from the state Department of Public Safety–who were all already on the scene, aware of the potential for trouble–swung into action, nipped the violent chaos in the bud, and put 177 violent criminals behind bars on charges of "engaging in organized criminal activity." Bail was uniformly, and understandably, set at $1 million.
William and Morgan English, pointed out in an interview, the gathering "was not a one-off, this was a frequent occurrence. These meetings would happen every couple of months [around Texas], and there has never been significant violence before. I believe at worse this would have been one murder if the police hadn't gone in and started shooting everyone in sight."
William English, in an account circulated by his lawyer, said "I heard two pops that sounded like small caliber gunfire. Following that, I heard several bursts of assault weapon shots. I recognized the sound because I carried one of those weapons for six years as a Marine. That's all the gunfire I heard. Then the police started screaming 'Get down!'"
A former Marine, Michael Devoll, told the local news station WFAA that he was just pulling into the Twin Peaks lot in a truck when he heard "a few rounds of handgun fire and then, I would say, an overbearing suppressing fire of M-4 rounds." Devoll characterized the ensuing melee as being mostly defined by a "barrage" of police rifle fire. "It was the most unorganized, unprofessional thing I've ever been a part of," he said.
The Associated Press reported, in the pages of the New York Times, that "several witnesses — at least three of them veterans with weapons training — told The Associated Press that the sound of rapid-fire rifle shots dominated," and that "Six witnesses interviewed by the AP describe a melee that began with a few pistol shots but was dominated by what sounded like short bursts of automatic gunfire." A named Navy vet, Steve Cochran, told the A.P. that "I heard one pistol shot. All the rest of the shots I heard were assault rifles," including sound-suppressed but audible rounds.
At least one of the arrested, Matthew Clendennen, is suing the police officers involved and the city of Waco and McClennan County, essentially for false imprisonment. Clendennen, in a phone interview, says he was so late to the event and things were so chaotic he can't personally speak authoritatively to the question of who was shooting and when or why. He says that though he "rides with the Scimitars" and was aware of the political meeting aspect, "my main purpose was to hang out with friends."
Clendennen is suing because he feels damaged by the police. "They drug my name through the mud from a professional standpoint. I was born and raised in Waco and owned and operate a business in Waco and my business is based off of my reputation, and the initial report...the mugshot, all that stuff drug my name through the mud," he said. Clendennen can't yet testify that it's lost him any of his landscaping business, but "we survive off of people Googling my name, and to see all those reports [about his arrest] online?"
More painfully for Clendennen, while in jail "my ex-wife served me with a petition" to restrict his custodial arrangement with his son to supervised visits, and filed a restraining order, leaving him, thanks to the arrest, "in the middle of a legal battle" and unable to be alone with his son or to discuss his civil or criminal cases with him.
Confidential informants in numerous cases are paid around $3000 a month and they are allowed to keep everything they can steal. In multiple cases, for example Mesa Mike Kramer, the CIs are alowed to get away with assaults and murder. Their primary job is to act as agents provocateur and solicit drug and gun buys and instigate other crimes.
...
The Aging Rebel has been told and has reported that two members of the Cossacks Motorcycle Club took off their club insignia and put on police windbreakers and balaclavas shortly after the shooting stopped on May 17. They were probably undercover FBI or ATF agents. The Aging Rebel believes the men released on May 17 were part of an ongoing federal investigation that exploded into violence. Based on interview with numerous sources, The Aging Rebel believes the violence was instigated by federal agents, that it was unnecessary and that the blatant Waco coverup that has ensued is intended to protect federal, state and local policeman from civil and criminal liability and embarrassment.