New Indictments Returned Against 22 Freemen Charges Supersede Earlier Indictments In Order To Consolidate The Cases
A federal grand jury has returned “superseding” indictments against 22 of the 24 defendants facing criminal charges in the freemen case, Montana’s U.S. attorney announced Friday.
The replacement indictments were sought “to consolidate and streamline the cases … to assist the court in managing the complex litigation and to add false claims charges involving attempts to defraud the Internal Revenue Service,” U.S. Attorney Sherry Scheel Matteucci said in announcing the new indictments.
Defendants named in the new indictments will be arraigned before federal Magistrate Richard Anderson at a time yet to be set, the federal prosecutor said.
The new indictments will not prolong the trial preparation time needed by the government, Matteucci said.
“We have always expected to go to trial sometime during the first three months of 1997 and that is still our expectation,” Matteucci said.
The siege began on March 25, when a group of white supremacist, anti-government militants barricaded themselves on a remote Garfield County farm and rejected an FBI request that they surrender. Three of the freemen already had been arrested.
The standoff ended June 13 with the surrender of the last 16 freemen.
The new indictments announced Friday supplant five of the seven indictments returned against the defendants earlier.
One indictment includes multiple counts of conspiracy, bank fraud, mail fraud, wire fraud, false claims, threats to federal officials and weapons offenses. It was returned against LeRoy M. Schweitzer, Daniel E. Petersen, Rodney O. Skurdal, Dale M. Jacobi, Richard E. Clark, John P. McGuire, Russell Landers, Dana Dudley, William Stanton, Agnes Stanton, Ebert Stanton, Ralph Clark, Emmett Clark and Cherlyn Petersen.
A second indictment, charging one count of aiding and abetting federal fugitives, names Steven Charles Hance, John Richard Hance, James Edward Hance, Jon Barry Nelson, Elwin Ward, Stewart Waterhouse, Edwin Clark and Casey Clark.
Edwin Clark also is charged with bank fraud; and Elwin Ward faces a false claim charge. The Hances and Stewart Waterhouse also are charged with various weapons offenses.
Other defendants charged in previous indictments include LaVon Hanson and Casey Veldhuizen, both of whom are charged with bank fraud and mail fraud. Veldhuizen also faces charges of aiding and abetting federal fugitives.