OREGON STANDOFF FBI AGENT TRIAL:   JUDGE, PROSECUTOR, DEFENSE LAWYERS TALK TO JURY, FINICUM MURDER DETAILS REVEALED

"We're going to have to shoot LaVoy Finicum"

State Police radio message to "Trooper 1" who killed LaVoy Finicum as quoted by FBI Agent W. Joseph Astarita's lead defense lawyer Rob Cary

Senior US District Judge Robert E. Jones (Age 91) opened the trial of FBI Agent W. Joseph Astarita by telling jurors to avoid social media and telling them the case is about three charges related to lying against Astarita and not the killing of LaVoy Finicum, the Oregon Standoff protestor Jones called a "militia leader".  

The prosecution and defense presented opening arguments.

Assistant US Attorney Gary Sussman said the trial is about integrity "without which a law enforcement officer is nothing" and he also said "if you shoot, you own your shots".

Astarita's lead attorney, Washington DC lawyer Rob Cary, said that Astarita is the "best of the best" and contended "If he had shot he would not have missed".

The team of defense lawyers contended that Astarita was not the only one who could have fired the two shots and that Oregon State Police "Trooper 1" (his real name is still kept secret since he is one of LaVoy Finicum's killers) is mostly likely the real shooter.

To buttress the defense argument Cary quoted a state police radio message after the first stop of LaVoy Finicum's truck by the OSP when LaVoy said he was going to Grant County to meet Sheriff Glenn Palmer who was at the town hall meeting the Oregon Standoff protesters were headed for.

As Finicum sped away from the stop where he and others were laser targeted with red dots visible on their bodies, a trooper there radioed to one of the troopers who would eventually kill Finicum known only as "Trooper 1":

"We're going to have to shoot LaVoy Finicum"

Finicum had stated that he intended to continue to Grant County up Route 395 to meet Sheriff Palmer and said they would have to shoot him to stop him before leaving that first stop.

Prosecutor Sussman argued that Agent Astarita's approach to Ryan Bundy after Bundy exited the truck knocking off his cowboy hat and looking at Bundy's shoulder pointed to Astarita checking to see if one of his shots hit Bundy.   

Bundy still carries the shrapnel in his shoulder and an x-ray taken shortly after his arrest at a local hospital shows the shrapnel wound.

The former lead FBI Agent in Oregon, the now retired Greg Bretzing, testified that it was very unusual for the five Hostage Rescue Team FBI agents including Astarita to be searching through the snow disturbing a crime scene contrary to standard practice.    Drone video showed them doing this after Finicum was killed and the passengers of his truck were taken into custody.

It was an apparent effort by the five to recover the shell casings from Astarita's rifle.

An exhibit was presented at the trial.     It was the plan for the operation that ended up killing LaVoy Finicum and injuring Ryan Bundy.

It was called the "Malheur Wildlife Refuge Militia Operation Vehicle Interdiction Plan".

Travis Hampton of the Oregon State Police also testified.

There was a third witness.

An FBI agent involved in leading the operation at the scene, Scott Ward, called the Oregon Standoff protesters a "threat against America" according to LaVoy Finicum's widow Jeanette Finicum, who is watching the trial.

Links to Maxine Bernstein "Oregon Live" stories published Wednesday July 25th....

"OregonLive" trial story 7/25/2018

"OregonLive" new details about Finicum killing-shooting story

Link to Jeanette Finicum video about her experiences at the trial....

JEANETTE FINICUM VIDEO 7/25/2018

 (EDITORIAL NOTE: WHAT "MILITIA" JUDGE JONES, WHAT FACTS DO YOU HAVE TO BACK UP THAT ASSERTION, I SEE NONE THAT LAVOY FINICUM WAS A 'MILITIA LEADER)

(THIS STORY WAS POSTED LATE WEDNESDAY JULY 25TH AND UPDATED EARLY AM THURSDAY JULY 26TH)