Anatomy of a Takedown: A Look at the Deadly Oregon Shootout

ByEMILY SHAPIRO ABCNews logo
Friday, January 29, 2016

The FBI released video of what it said is the complete and unedited view of the fatal confrontation between officers and one of the militia members who was occupying the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon.

Here's a step-by-step look at what happened leading up to Tuesday's deadly shooting, according to the FBI video released on Thursday.

The Pursuit Before the shooting, authorities had been waiting for the leaders of the occupation to leave the federal facility, sources familiar with the case told ABC News. Authorities were told Tuesday that some members would be on the move.

The footage, which came from an FBI plane, first shows FBI agents and Oregon State Police troopers pursuing people in two different cars, trying to bring them into custody.

One of the group's vehicles, a Jeep, stopped, while the other, a full-sized white truck, continued moving. Once the truck stopped, authorities got out of their vehicles to make arrests. However, after one person exited the truck and was taken into custody, it sped away, sources said.

The video then follows the pursuit of the truck, which was driven by Robert "LaVoy" Finicum, the spokesman for the militia group.

The Roadblock When Finicum's truck approached a roadblock, he tried to drive around it, nearly hitting an FBI agent, the FBI said.

The Snowbank Finicum's truck then got stuck in the snowbank.

The Shooting Finicum exited the truck and stepped through the snow with his hands up.

The FBI said that agents and troopers had information that Finicum and others would be armed.

Finicum reaches his right hand toward a pocket on the left inside part of his jacket at least twice, said Greg Bretzing, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Oregon. Finicum had a loaded 9 mm semi-automatic handgun in that pocket.

According to Bretzing, Oregon State Police troopers then fatally shot Finicum.

The Deschutes County Major Incident Team is conducting a review of the shooting, the FBI said.

The Aftermath About 30 seconds after the shooting, officers deployed flash bangs to disorient any other armed occupants, Bretzing said. Then they deployed "less-lethal sponge projectiles with OC capsules," which are similar to pepper spray, Bretzing said.

Troopers then removed the remaining truck occupants to take them into custody, said the FBI.

About ten minutes after the shooting, when officials "were confident that they had addressed any further threats," they provided medical assistance to Finicum, said Bretzing.

Officials found three other loaded weapons inside the truck: two .223 caliber semi-automatic rifles and a .38 special revolver, said the FBI.

The situation at the refuge remains unresolved, Bretzing said Thursday.

"We are doing everything we can to bring this to a resolution safely and quickly," Bretzing said.

Finicum's Family Finicum's family called his death a "murder" in an earlier statement.

"This fight against tyranny is not over. Press forward," the statement said. "Forgiveness is what we can extend and understanding is what we want. Christ was and is LaVoy's exemplar. Though there are evil and conspiring men at work, Christ still forgave the executioners for they knew not what they did."

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