Camp Lone Star — A Favorable Ruling?

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
May 26, 2015

 

On March 30, Massey attended a hearing with testimony that was discussed in Camp “Lone Star — The Setup – Get Massey“. At the end of that hearing, since the government had not responded directly to the existing “Motion to Dismiss”, Judge Hanen allowed the Prosecutor until April 10, and the Defense until April 17, to file supplemental motions.

Massey’s attorney, Louis Sorola, submitted a First Supplement to Opposed Motion to Dismiss Indictment. However, rather than just arguing “case law”, though some was included, he ventured into the realm of “substantive law”, arguing two points with regard to the Constitution, and not just previous decisions.

Massey wanted to challenge jurisdiction, though he was too late to do so, having pled “not guilty”. He also wanted to question the constitutionality of the charges against him, for a number of reasons — most significantly, those discussed in “Camp Lone Star – Massey & The Clash of Laws“. However, his former attorney, Ed Cyganiewicz, refused to take the battle to the courtroom, preferring to go along with the game of “let’s make a deal”. Fortunately, Massey’s insistence in fighting, rather than just giving in, caused Cyganiewicz to withdraw from the case.

Providence, then, provided his next attorney, Mr. Louis Sorola. Sorola listened to Massey, and Massey provided him a copy of an article, Liberty or Laws? “Felon in Possession of a Firearm” is Not Legal or Lawful“, which addressed, among other questions, what Massey refers to as the “has-had” argument and the “equal justice” argument.

Sorola, faithful to his client (unusual, nowadays), did research, found that the “has-had” argument had not been argued, and then prepared the “First Supplement…” (linked above), and served it on the Court and Judge Hagen within the time allowed.

Word came back that after receiving the “First Supplement…”, the courthouse was “abuzz”. Apparently, Hagen was taken aback, and had no idea just how to deal with this new stick in the federal spokes.

The Argument

Let’s first look at the wording of the “felon in possession” statute, 18 USC § 922 (g), that is pertinent to the argument.

“to ship or transport in interstate or foreign commerce, or possess in or affecting commerce, any firearm or ammunition; or to receive any firearm or ammunition which has been shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce.”

That is it. The question is what does “has” mean, as written in the statute.

Now, we will look at the “has-had” argument (paragraph #4), from the “First Supplement…”:

The word “has”, as opposed to the word “had” was used in the statute. “Has” is the third person singular, present indicative, verb meaning active in the action just completed, where “had” is past tense and participle of the verb have, meaning in a previous situation. So, if one were the direct recipient, then the word “has” would be appropriate. However, if it were expansive, intended to include any firearm shipped in interstate commerce, then “had” would be the proper verb. The use of “had” would have meant to include any and all that “had” been so transported any time prior

Keep that in mind as we visit the “equal justice” argument “(paragraphs #14, 15), again from the “First Supplement…”:

[I]f you live in a state that manufactures a firearm, then you can possess it, as it has not been involved in interstate commerce. However, if you have ammunition that was manufactured in another state, then you are guilty because of the ammunition. If you live in a state that manufactures both weapons and ammunition, you can possess those “firearms” and ammunition. However, if you live in a state that manufactures one, the other, or neither, then you may have but one, or none. That seems to give preference to one state over another.

Further, this absolutely defies the concept of equal justice; it would defy the concept of Article IV, § 2, which states, “The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all of the Privileges and Immunities of the Citizens of the several States.” It would mean that if one moved to another state, with what was legal, from the federal standpoint, in the state from which he began, he would be a criminal in the other state.

Before we look back to put some perspective on our argument, let’s visit another provision of the Constitution, not included in the argument, but relevant to our consideration, is Article IV, § 4:

“The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government…”

Under the authority so guaranteed, Texas enacted their own “felon in possession” statute, many decades ago. It provides that:

Sec. 46.04. UNLAWFUL POSSESSION OF FIREARM.

(a) A person who has been convicted of a felony commits an offense if he possesses a firearm:

(1) after conviction and before the fifth anniversary of the person’s release from confinement following conviction of the felony or the person’s release from supervision under community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision, whichever date is later;

So, one “commits an offense”, unless his sentence for a felony, and any other supervision, etc., is five years, or more, behind him. Texas recognizes that the right to bear arms is restored when one has rehabilitated himself, and “stayed clean” for five years.

So, the Texas statute is in conflict with 922 (g) if we accept that “has” means “had”, and the impediment, the prohibition of possession, was not limited to the act of commerce, but was applicable to the rest of one’s life.

And, the “equal justice” provision, Article IV, § 2, is in conflict with 922 (g) if we accept that “has” means “had”, in that the application would be solely dependent upon the state that one lived in, rather than any sense of justice..

However, if we consider that “has”, as written, means “has”, as written and intended, and improperly applied in the “administration” of that law by the government, then there is no conflict between 922 (g) and either Article IV, § 2, or the right of Texas to enact laws under “a Republican Form of Government”.

* * *

Since April 20, when the court first received the “First Supplement…”, Massey and Sorola have been waiting, anxiously, for Judge Hanen’s ruling on the motions before it. Now Judge Hanen is busy dealing with the Department of Justice and their deceitful practice of defying his order in the Amnesty case, but after 4 weeks, there was still no ruling.

It seems that if Judge Hanen were going to rule against Sorola’s motions, it would be a no-brainer to simply rule, and get on with the trial. However, there was nothing except a very loud SILENCE from the Court, until May 20, when Judge Hanen delivered a rather interesting “Order“. The order indicates that Hanen still has to rule on two motions before the Court, and opens the door for another round of paperwork, (amendments to the previous positions), giving until May 29 to answer. He does cite the recent Henderson v. United States decision out of the Supreme Court, and though he finds that there is no “impact on the pending motions”, he leaves the door open, to allow the Prosecution every latitude.

Massey’s apprehension in quite understandable. He has been wearing an “ankle bracelet” since November 12, 2014, and has been under “Home Detention”, since that time (See “Camp Lone Star – Cruel and Unusual Punishments – Before Conviction“. His last motion was submitted on April 20, and so a month later, he finds that there will be nine more days of agonizing waiting for the ruling that will determine whether the Constitution and the laws of the State of Texas are supreme, or if Administrative Rules and Regulations override them.

So, why is Judge Hanen waiting so long to rule? Denying the motions would be such a simple task, though ruling that “Felon in Possession” is, well, unconstitutional, is not so easily accomplished. There is a likelihood that the government, facing such a loss, would appeal. Most judges prefer to not have a decision overturned by a higher court, so if he is going to grant the Motion to Dismiss, he apparently afforded every opportunity for the Prosecutor to attempt a challenge to the position presented in the “First Supplement…”, thereby minimizing the possibility of a successful appeal. And, of course, knowing that the government does not like to have its authority challenged, it might well be a career ending decision for Hanen to make. However, if others are willing to give their lives for the Constitution, then to end one’s career for such purpose is an act worthy of a true patriot.

Further, Judge Hanen has not rescheduled the planned June 4 Jury Selection, nor the Pre-Trial Conference, set for June 2, leaving just one working day from the final motions to trial start. This would lend one to believe that his intention is to rule in favor of the Motion to Dismiss Indictment, unless the government can scrape together a non-existent argument in opposition to “has-had” and “equal justice”. In which case, the trial would have to be scheduled even further down the road to allow for preparation.

It does appear that when Judge Hanen does pick up his gavel, it will come down declaring freedom for KC Massey, and a quandary for the government, as all those who have been convicted, or even pled guilty to “Felon in Possession” may have pled, or been convicted, of a non-crime.

Camp Lone Star – Nor Shall Private Property be Taken…

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
May 22, 2015

Massey received at “Notice of Seizure and Administrative Forfeiture Proceeding” from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, dated November 19, 2014. In it, the government had listed weapons and ammunition, which, according to their assessment, total $1134.90. This included three .45 caliber and two 7.62 mm weapons, and over 2500 rounds of ammunition — do the math — the weapons, alone, would exceed the BATF total.

It contained both forms and inventories, listing the above items. And, there were explicit instructions on what to do to contest the forfeiture of the property. No compensation offered, just try as you might, ‘we are going to keep this stuff’.

It also cited various statutes, however, when Massey read the statutes, he did not see any applicability. If he goes to trial, the property would be evidence, and, if he doesn’t go to trial, the property should be returned. After all, it is theft to keep property if there was no crime committed with the property. But, after scrutinizing the documents, he realized that this was “civil forfeiture”, the taking of property just because they want to take it.

Now, Massey, not sure if they were trying to trick him into some sort of confession — professing to own weapons that he might not own, and realizing that there might be other traps in the forms that they wanted him to fill out, declined to complete the forms, and simply question their right to take property, under the circumstances.

So, within the time constraints in the document, he chose to respond, via correspondence, rather than government forms. After citing the many statutes that were referred to in the BATF letter, he writes, “I have read those cited sections, and I am at a loss as to what authority is being used to deny the owners said property. I see nothing that begins to suggest such authority within the context of those codes.”

He asks them to be more specific in their cited statute, and he reminded them that, according to the CAFRA Act of 2002, the Burden of Proof lies upon the Government, to wit:

18 USC 983 (c) Burden of Proof. – In a suit or action brought under any civil forfeiture statute for the civil forfeiture of any property –

(1) the burden of proof is on the Government to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the property is subject to forfeiture;

Don’t you suppose that the government should have some idea of their authority, instead of trying to trick somebody into doing something that the person has no obligation to do?

So, just like in a ping pong game, another mailing from the BATF, in which they state:

As stated in your Notice of Forfeiture Proceedings letter, dated November 19, 2014, the Claim must identify the specific property being claimed; state the claimant’s interest in such property; and be made under oath, subject to penalty of perjury.

Are my eyes deceiving me? The government already listed the property, now they want Massey to list the property. They also want him to “claim an interest in [the] property“. But, they started the game. First, they took the property from Massey. Then, they told him what property they wanted him to forfeit. Now, they act as if they don’t know what property they are talking about, and they question his interest in the property.

Let’s get real. When they took the property from Massey, whether it was his, or belonged to someone else, he had taken responsibility for the property, unless, of course, it was stolen. So, he would also have the obligation to return the property to its rightful owner, one the government finishes with the circle-jerk. It makes me begin to wonder (well, I have wondered since back in 1993, Waco, Texas) whether the BATF (back then, we referred to them as Bat F#$ks) only hired retards, since they can’t seem to do anything right, and are more prone to screw it up worse than it was, one they set their minds (perhaps overly gracious) to work on it.

Anyway, that last BATF notice was dated December 18, 2014, and it also had attached lists of the mysterious property that they wanted Massey to identify.

So, on December 29, Massey responded. Now, though his response is linked, here, it is simply too wonderful to not insert portions of the response, here in this article. In response to BATF alleging that he had submitted a claim:

I am in receipt of your letter of December 18. It misrepresents that I submitted a claim for the return of property. What I sent you was an explanation as to the circumstances surrounding the property that you are endeavoring to seize.

So, now that they may have gotten that right, let’s move on to why Massey cannot respond to deal with the property and ownership, as the BATF would like him to:

First, the Court has barred me from any communication with members of Rusty’s Rangers. The property that you are seizing is owned by members of what the government refers to as “Rusty’s Rangers”. You have not noticed them regarding their property, though you have put upon me a requirement that I violate a court order, or make me responsible for the loss of property owned by members of “Rusty’s Rangers”. If I don’t violate the court order, then you will deny the rightful owners their property.

Then, he returns to the very laws that BATF is attempting to enforce or misinterpret,

I also brought to your attention that you have not stated why the property was seized and subject to forfeiture. You throw a number of codes out, though each of them is so broad in its construction, that I have yet to find any presumed authority for the forfeiture.

Notwithstanding that what you are attempting to do is clearly in violation of the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution, I find that you also fail to meet your statutory obligation under 18 U.S.C. § 983

(c) Burden of Proof. – In a suit or action brought under any civil forfeiture statute for the civil forfeiture of any property –

(1) the burden of proof is on the Government to establish, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the property is subject to forfeiture;

So, how can the government demonstrate a burden of proof, when there is no charge associated with which the burden can be demonstrated? A specific criminal, or other act, under the laws of the United States would have to be submitted as a cause of action, and then the burden of proof, by a preponderance of evidence. I see no evidence with which you might, in the most ludicrous manner, attach a “burden of proof”. It is that which I am seeking, and, it would appear that this would have to be provided prior to any requirement for me to file a claim for the property of others.

Well, that was sent to the BATF via Fed Ex, so they have had over 5 months in which to see if they can do more than sling words, without meaning or context. And, since no Order has been filed on the case, or provided to Massy, we must presume that the whole matter of forfeiture is on hold, and that Massey will be able to return all of the property to the rightful owners, once the case is dismissed (see next article).

In the meantime, maybe those BATF officials have returned to school to learn something other than intimidation is behind the laws of this country.

 

April 19, 2015

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
April 19, 2015

Twenty years ago, today, the Murrah Federal Courthouse, in Oklahoma City, was bombed by a patriot who intended to light the fuse of violent resistance to the government’s overarching, and deadly, imposition upon the rights of the people. Some of the motivation behind this act was a response to the efforts of government, just two years earlier, to divest some people of their right to bear arms, and other infringements of the Constitution.

Twenty-two years ago, today, agencies of the federal government murdered over 80 people; in Waco, Texas; men, women, and children, in their own home/Church. Again, divesting the right to bear arms, and other constitutional infringements were the underlying elements in this event.

Two-hundred and forty years ago, today, more than 80 men stood on Lexington Green to demonstrate dissatisfaction with the government’s effort to divest them of their constitutional and sacred right to keep arms.

Today, K. C. Massey’s attorney, Louis Sorola, filed (electronically) a Motion to Dismiss the Indictment upon which the government’s case against Massey rests. That motion is an objection to the government’s attempt to divest Massey of his right to bear arms, by overreaching constitutional authority.

There are two elements in each of these events. First, arms; Second, the Constitution

Now, the government and Mainstream Media downplay the latter and demonize the former. And, that has become the underlying creed of law enforcement, as demonstrated by the short (45 second) video clip, “Sheriff’s Deputy Admits MRAPs Are For Constitutionalists“. Though the jurisdiction and the date of the video are not known (unless someone comes forward with that information), it is apparent that the two deputies are serious in what they say:

Deputy #1: “We’ve got a lot of constitutionalists and a lot of people that stockpile weapons, a lot of ammunition, and they have [intelligible] weapons here locally.”

So, the first Deputy sees danger in “constitutionalists” stockpiling weapons and ammo. He sounds a lot like General Gage, military governor of Massachusetts.

Deputy #2: “It’s worldwide. The world is unstable now; you look anywhere, you watch the news.”

As to the second, what is “worldwide”? The fear of constitutionalists is an international problem? “Hey, buddy! Yeah, you, the deputy, don’t you work for this county? What are you doing dealing in international matters?”

As George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.“

Have we learned? Can we remember? What, possibly, can the government do to return to the Constitution, and avoid the violence that they have already begun?

Let us not slide further into that abyss of abject slavery and obedience to a government that was supposed to belong to us.

 

Government’s purpose is to govern the Government,
Not to govern the People.

 

Camp Lone Star — The Setup
Get Massey

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
April 18, 2015

 

There were always bits and pieces that pointed toward a rather unpleasant picture; however, they amounted to nothing more than circumstantial evidence. Circumstantial evidence has always been an insufficient foundation for my articles.

Now, we are going to look at some of that circumstantial evidence. It will include statements from players, though that information has not yet been made public, nor is the government even aware that this information has come to light. One of these two sources was present the night before the arrest (October 19, 2014). The other was present at the shooting incident (August 29, 2014).

We will begin with the team of Massey, Varner, and Foerster, and the relevant events leading up to, and after the shooting incident.

In the early afternoon of August 29, Massey decided to run a patrol, and asked if anyone wanted to go. Both Varner and Foerster agreed to go. Whether Foerster made any phone calls, once he knew that Massey was participating in the patrol, is not known. It is possible that another person in the camp provided that information to an unknown investigator awaiting the opportunity and circumstance under which Massey could be charged with “Felon in Possession”. We will refer to that other person as “S”.

To establish a timeline for the subsequent events, we look at when Massey spoke with Mr. Aguilar, the Curator of the Sabal Palms Preserve, the private property where the shooting occurred. Varner had looked at his phone at about 3:00 PM, just a couple of minutes before Massey finished his conversation with Mr. Aguilar — to provide protection on the Sabal Palms property.

Approximately 20 minutes later, after visiting a couple of other locations, they arrived near the scene of the subsequent shooting. A BP agent appeared to be interested in something, so Massey asked him if they could help. The agent responded, “Yes, we could use some help.” At this point, they parked the Mule (an ATV) and spread out. Varner says that Massey was about sixty feet away and Foerster, another 120 feet away. Shortly after they began, Varner saw an unidentified BP agent jogging along with Foerster, perhaps ten feet from him. This event is estimated to be 5 to 7 minutes before the shooting. Minutes later, because of the vegetation, visibility between Varner, Massey, and Foerster was obscured. So, we have a BP agent with Foerster before the shooting.

About 2 to 4 minutes before the shooting, BP agent Cantu moves to within a few feet behind Varner, though he says nothing. As shots are heard, Varner said, “Shots fired”, and repeated this at least three times. Cantu doesn’t react to these calls, or the shots — at least at this time.

The first words out of Cantu’s mouth were, “Where is Massey?” That raises the question, since Massey was not visible from where Varner and Cantu were; how did Cantu knew that Massey was on the patrol?

Varner responds by yelling to Massey, “Cantu is looking for you!”

Cantu then walked in the direction of the shots, without meeting Massey. Within a few minutes, he returns with the BP agent who fired the shots, and Foerster. Now, this gets interesting; Varner is absolutely sure that the agent’s nametag read “Hernandez”, while the government’s testimony, to date, says it was “Gonzales”. Foerster and the agent were both still in possession of their firearms.

Cantu and the agent walked toward the “assembly area”, where the investigation was to be conducted. Cantu told Massey to follow them with the Mule. Massey said something to the effect that nobody was hurt and they would like to leave. Cantu told him that they would have to go to the assembly area for the investigation. They were all still in possession of their weapons, which were left in the Mule when they arrived at the assembly area.

An agent from BPS removed the weapons from the Mule and placed them in the back of a BP vehicle. One could suppose that “Officer Safety” advised them that there was a risk in leaving the weapons with the innocent Camp Lone Star members.

About this time, the shooter, Hernandez/Gonzales, walked up to Cantu and traded firearms with him. The evidence in the shooting was not bagged, but rather simply changed holsters. This happened before any outside investigators arrived on the scene. Ponder, if you will, whether the subsequent investigation, conducted by the Sheriff’s Deputy and the FBI, included the weapon used in the shooting; if ballistics tests were conducted, and which weapon was tested, if they even bothered to ask for it. But, let’s not confuse ourselves with such details. However Varner, once again, confirms that the shooter’s nametag read “Hernandez”.

Varner, upon asking Cantu what had happened, was told that the shooting occurred when the agent was about 30 feet from Foerster, which was confirmed in subsequent testimony. Varner remains incredulous; “How could anyone miss with five shots from 30 feet?” Varner also states that he never heard the shooter utter a word, to anyone, throughout the entire ordeal.

When Varner’s weapons were returned to him by the Sheriff’s Deputy, the Deputy asked what had happened. Varner told him about the BP requesting help, though that, conveniently, does not show up in the testimony.

When the trio returned to Camp Lone Star, “S” was, uncharacteristically, standing, waiting, for them. He had never done so, before.

Next, we fast-forward to the evening of October 19, 2014. Archie Seals, James Lewis, and Massey were in the long-term motel room that was used for an occasional good night’s rest, a good hot shower, and for meetings, as the need arose.

This particular night a conference call was scheduled with a number of militia people from around the country. The topic of the call was a plan for a massive gathering in Washington, D.C., though the objective, strategy, and tactics were, at the least, undeveloped. They did decide to name it “Operation American Freedom”.

The call had been going on for quite a while, when Foerster buzzed the room and Lewis went down to let him in, brought him up by the elevator, and into the room. This is significant in that Foerster had been removed from Camp Lone Star due to his erratic behavior, at least three weeks prior, and had not been heard from, since. He did not say anything; he simply went over to the bed and sat down. He remained there for the rest of his stay.

After the conference call ended, Lewis and Seal returned to Camp Lone Star. Foerster remained, absent any meaningful conversation or reason. Then he left, probably after he was certain that Massey was going to spend the night in the motel room.

The next morning, Massey left and found 15 to 20 agents waiting in the parking lot to arrest him. Well, someone must have told them that he had spent the night in the room. The presence of 15 to 20 agents indicates that they knew that Massey had spent the night in the room.

When I began this story, I explained that there was a lot of circumstantial evidence. Well, some is explained, above, while other such evidence can be surmised by the events. Taken together, it only raises a suspicion, at best.

Now, when we look at the sworn testimony by either document, or from the transcript, we have established a critical timeline of events.

The government claims that the shooting occurred at about 3:45 PM. The government’s sworn testimony states that that the first records check was run by Deputy Sheriff Valerio, after he arrived at 4:18 PM.

Massey’s attorney, Mr. Louis Sorola, though he has yet to receive copies, made notes while reviewing some records. The two important records, and the absence of one, show that Massey was run through the NCIC system at 15:12:53 (That’s 3:12 PM), fully one half hour before the shooting, and over an hour before the sworn statement as to the first records check to determine if Massey (not even a witness to the shooting) had a felony record. The NCIC records check was not run by the Sheriff, and there is no record in the Persecutor’s file that shows that the Sheriff ran them (as testified), or not. The check was run by FBI SA Schneider. But, the FBI didn’t arrive on the scene until after the Sheriff, and, purportedly, only to conduct interviews.

There is no record that Varner was ever run that day. Though, if they didn’t know better, they would have run everyone who had weapons, including Varner.

Finally, Foerster, who is a convicted felon, was not run through the system until after 8:00 PM, though I do not have the exact time. So, since Foerster was the alleged target of the shooting, why was he not run until much later? For appearance sake? If Massey was the target, they may have wanted to appear diligent in all respects, and, at least, run Foerster, one of only two witnesses to the “crime”.

A final thought with regard to what appears to be a major screw up; the government first attempted to make it appear that Massey had no right, under Texas law, to be on the Sabal Palms property with a weapon. Obviously, they were unaware that he had just come from reaching an agreement with Mr. Aguilar that did allow that land to be included in the “premises”, according to Texas law. Via sworn testimony, they attempted to convert “public” land to be construed as any land the public can go on, and apply that construction to a private nature preserve, Sabal Palms.

I’m certain there are many more facts that have been withheld from the defense, and I am equally certain that as those facts are eventually produced, the likelihood of Prosecutor Hagen receiving an Award from Department of Justice for successful prosecution is about as remote as his chances of going to Heaven.

Camp Lone Star – Act Two: The Contradictions
Scene 3: To Be, or Not to Be – Forthright

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
April 14, 2015

In Act One: The Government Charade, Judge Hanen graciously gave Prosecuting Attorney Hagen, the opportunity to respond to the Motions to Suppress and Dismiss, in greater detail, since he had failed to address some of the points presented in Mr. Sorola’s motions. The deadline for the response was April 10. So, we anxiously awaited that filing to see if Hagen could dig out of the hole he had created for himself, with his prosecution (persecution?) of K. C. Massey.

Well, I received a copy of Government’s Supplementary Response To Motion Suppress And Motion To Dismiss Indictment, on Friday, April 10. Now, it is typical of the “case law” method, which, well, let’s use the description of Teddy Roosevelt’s thoughts on this method, from the book “Bully Pulpit”, by Doris Kearns Goodwin. Case law method was developed at Harvard in 1872. “Though the pleasure he took in his studies is amply expressed in his journal, he was troubled that ‘some of the teaching of the law books and of the classroom seemed to me to be against justice.’ He noted critically that ‘we are concerned with [the] question of what law is, not what it ought to be.'” So, like Teddy, we are stuck with “what law is, not what it ought to be.”

Hagen’s Response addresses a number of higher court opinions, both Supreme and appellate, though we will only be looking at those opinions of the Supreme Court. So, let’s look at just how Mr. Hagen attempts to extricate himself from that hole. At this time, we will only address the Response to the Motion to Suppress.

First, he addresses the Motion to Suppress Evidence. In so doing, he lists the following:

(i) Defendant was observed carrying a rifle and that observation was made prior to any alleged search or stop;
(ii) Defendant was asked for his identification by law enforcement in the course of investigating a shooting involving a federal agent;
(iii) Defendant was detained after the shooting occurred as potential witnesses;
(iv) Defendant’s firearms were seized to protect both law enforcement and civilian witnesses; and,
(v) Defendant’s possession of two firearms was in violation of both state and federal law.

Regarding (i), this was discussed in the previous article. If the act was criminal, why did the government not arrest Massey when the observation was made? The answers rests on identification of Massey and determination of his status, none of which would have occurred had the “stop” or “detention” not occurred. Should we “cooperate” with law enforcement if going about our daily lives might result in subjecting ourselves to directed persecution? In this case, the shooter, in violation of both law and policy, and, the subject of the “investigation”, goes free, while the non-witness is subsequently arrested. One has to wonder if this whole thing was a set up to “get Massey”.

Regarding (ii) & (iii), that, too, was addressed in the previous post. Someone who, like the “investigator”, Cantu, had no more information than Cantu had, until Cantu received a radio message and passed that same information on to Massey, does not really qualify as a witness to anything. This leaves the question of “stop” or “detention” open, and that will be discussed shortly.

Regarding (iv), Foerster, Massey, and Varner, all retained their weapons, posing no threat, as testified to by Cantu. Subsequently, the decision was made, by persons unknown, that the weapons should be “secured”. “Seized”, as described in the Response, has no relationship to the testimony.

Regarding (v), here comes a problem, with Hagen’s comprehension skills. He quotes Texas Penal Code, as follows:

Texas Penal Code § 46.04 Unlawful Possession of Firearm

(a) A person who has been convicted of a felony commits an offense if he possess a firearm:

(1) After conviction and before the fifth anniversary of the persons release from confinement following conviction of the felony or the person’s release from supervision under community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision, whichever date is later; or

(2) After the period described by Subdivision (1), at any location other than the premises at which the person lives.

So, it says, in the singular, that he is in violation “if he possess a firearm”, before the fifth anniversary. Are we to assume that if he possesses more than one firearm, he is exempt from violation? It says nothing about any limitation after the fifth anniversary. Except, perhaps, in some secret version of Texas law that Hagen has hidden in his drawers.

Now, if Hagen is suggesting that Massey was not at “the premises at which the person lives”, the government also already stated that Massey had been at Camp Lone Star for four months. So, can there be any doubt as to where he lived at the time of this incident? The purpose of this provision is, without doubt, to provide the means for protecting the “premise”. Does that preclude someone from going on to his neighbor’s property, with that neighbor’s permission, to provide for that protection?

However, we can put that all aside, as Massey is not charged with violation of state law, Hagen has charged him with violation of federal law. The Sheriff’s Office has not chosen to file charges against Massey in their jurisdiction, so that makes Hagen’s argument somewhere on the other side of moot.

So, let’s look at the Supreme Court decisions that Hagen has cited to defend his position. First is Hiibel v. Sixth Judicial District Court Nevada 542 US 177. He argues that “A police officer is free to ask a person for identification without implicating the Fourth Amendment“.

So, let’s see what Hiibel says:

At 177, setting the background of the case, it says, “Petitioner Hiibel was arrested and convicted in a Nevada court for refusing to identify himself to a police officer during an investigative stop involving a reported assault. Nevada’s “stop and identify” statute requires a person detained by an officer under suspicious circumstances to identify himself.”

At 184, we find “Here there is no question that the initial stop was based on reasonable suspicion, satisfying the Fourth Amendment requirements noted in Brown.“

Then finally, at 185, the pages cited by Hagen, we find, “Asking questions is an essential part of police investigations. In the ordinary course a police officer is free to ask a person for identification without implicating the Fourth Amendment. “‘[I]nterrogation relating to one’s identity or a request for identification by the police does not, by itself, constitute a Fourth Amendment seizure.”… the Court has recognized that a law enforcement officer’s reasonable suspicion that a person may be involved in criminal activity permits the officer to stop the person for a brief time and take additional steps to investigate further.“

So, just what were the “suspicious circumstances”, or “reasonable suspicion”, that existed on August 29, 2014, on the Sabal Palms property? Perhaps Hagen should be instructing BPS, FBI, and others, as to what is required to “investigate” and require that one identify himself, absent the criteria established by the Supreme Court. I suppose that we could also ask Mr. Hagen what the difference is between and “interview”, as described in testimony, and, “interrogation”, as cited in this case.

Then, he cites INS v. Delgado 466 US 210. He does not, however, provide any quotation from that case, so I suppose that quantity rather than quality might be his motivation, here. So, to put a context on the current situation, I will provide the quotations. This case refers to whether INS could profile by asking questions of employees being suspected of being illegal aliens. So, here is what the cited page, 216, tells us:

In contrast, a much different situation prevailed in Brown v. Texas, 443 U.S. 47 (1979), when two policemen physically detained the defendant to determine his identity, after the defendant refused the officers’ request to identify himself. The Court held that absent some reasonable suspicion of misconduct, the detention of the defendant to determine his identity violated the defendant’s Fourth Amendment right to be free from an unreasonable seizure.

Unless the circumstances of the encounter are so intimidating as to demonstrate that a reasonable person would have believed he was not free to leave if he had not responded, one cannot say that the questioning resulted in a detention under the Fourth Amendment.

So, the Court has given us a situation, and then concludes, “Unless… a reasonable person would have believed he was not free to leave if he had not responded”, then the questioning was not a detention. However, Hagen as argued that this was a “stop” (Terry Stop), not a detention, and there is no doubt that when Massey “cooperated” in providing his identification, he had already been told that there was an investigation and that he could not leave.

Next, he cites United States v. Sharpe 470 US 675. At least he provides a context, and page (685), though, again, no quotation. So, we will begin at 684:

In that case, law enforcement agents stopped the defendant after his arrival in an airport and seized his luggage for 90 minutes to take it to a narcotics detection dog for a “sniff test.” We decided that an investigative seizure of personal property could be justified under the Terry doctrine, but that “[t]he length of the detention of respondent’s luggage alone precludes the conclusion that the seizure was reasonable in the absence of probable cause.”

And, at the cited page 685:

While it is clear that “the brevity of the invasion of the individual’s Fourth Amendment interests is an important factor in determining whether the seizure is so minimally intrusive as to be justifiable on reasonable suspicion,” we have emphasized the need to consider the law enforcement purposes to be served by the stop as well as the time reasonably needed to effectuate those purposes.

So, in the first instance, a stop of 90 minutes was unreasonable, absent “probable cause”. And, in the second, there was an “invasion of the individual’s Fourth Amendment interests”, rests upon “reasonable suspicion”. They speak of “seizure”. That is what the Prosecution has claimed, and maintained by continue to retain, all of the firearms, except Varner’s. But, they were not “seized”, according to testimony. They were “secured” for Officer Safety.

Okay, just one more. This is United States v. Leon 468 US 897. Though no quotations are given, he points out that Rotunno, the agent who swore to the accuracy of the information used to secure the various Warrants and Criminal Complaint, was present neither at the shooting incident investigation on August 29, nor at the arrest on October 20, 2014. Quite simply, Rotunno “fabricated” (that is a polite form of lying) an important element of what happened on August 29, which implied that Foerster, and Foerster, alone, might have committed a criminal act by “pointing: his firearm at Gonzales. Massey and Varner were innocent parties to the entire episode. So, Hagen’s assertion might apply to Foerster, but the great leap to envelope Massey in his web is without any lawful or legal merit.

That doesn’t however, remove us from consideration of what the court said in U. S, v Leon.

In this case, a warrant was issued based upon observations during a drug trafficking investigation, by law enforcement officers. There was nothing illegal about the observations, nor were there misrepresentations, or outright lies, in the affidavit that resulted in the warrant.

The court held that “Application of the exclusionary rule should continue where a Fourth Amendment violation has been substantial and deliberate, but the balancing approach that has evolved in determining whether the rule should be applied in a variety of contexts – including criminal trials – suggests that the rule should be modified to permit the introduction of evidence obtained by officers reasonably relying on a warrant issued by a detached and neutral magistrate.”

Further, that “the courts must also insist that the magistrate purport to perform his neutral and detached function and not serve merely as a rubber stamp for the police… However the exclusionary rule is designed to deter police misconduct rather than to punish the errors of judges and magistrates.”

And, that “A police officer’s reliance on the magistrate’s probable-cause determination and on the technical sufficiency of the warrant he issues must be objectively reasonable. Suppression remains an appropriate remedy if the magistrate or judge in issuing a warrant was misled by information in an affidavit that the affiant knew was false or would have known was false except for his reckless disregard of the truth, or if the issuing magistrate wholly abandoned his detached and neutral judicial role.”

So, though even Foerster may find relief by this decision, Massey was nothing more than a bystander in the events of August 29, and nothing conjured by Hagen can change that relationship. There was never the requisite probable cause, suspicion, or any other factor, that would ensnare Massey in this web. It is only Hagen’s desire to please those “up the river” that forces him to persist in the persecution of K. C. Massey.

Now, I realize that what was just stated might be considered by some to be overstepping the bounds of propriety. However, we must not detach ourselves from the reality that we are constantly presented with the excuse that, “there are only a few bad cops”. We have learned, over time that “few” is a gross misrepresentation of reality.

Let us simply refresh our minds with a recent event wherein an innocent man spent thirty years on Death Row. He was released when his innocence was final acknowledged. His innocence was known by the Prosecutor, from the very beginning. That Prosecutor, Marty Stroud, has repented. Marty Stroud is demonstrative of the subject of the book, “Three Felonies a Day”, by Harvey A. Silverglate, in which the objective is to obtain a conviction, regardless of guilt, and to distort the wording of the law to achieve that end.

Camp Lone Star – Act Two: The Contradictions
Scene 2: To Detain, or Not to Detain? That is the Question.

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
April 12, 2015

Another question brought up in Sorola’s motion to suppress evidence was also addressed. At issue is whether he was detained, at which point he would have to be read his Miranda rights, which they did not do, or simply stopped for investigative purposes. The latter would be what is referred to as a Terry Stop. It is worth noting that a Terry Stop is defined as:

A brief detention of a person on reasonable suspicion of involvement in criminal activity but short of probable cause for arrest. To have reasonable suspicion that would justify a stop, police must be able to point to “specific and articulable facts” that would indicate to a reasonable person that a crime has been, is being, or is about to be committed.

As you read the testimony, decide what you believe the answer is. Remember that only two people were witness to any criminal activity — the shooting incident.

Mr. Hagen said, in his initial argument:

[T]he Border Patrol agent [then] fired several shots at Mr. Foerster, thankfully missing.

So that launched a — an investigation since a federal agent had discharged his firearm. That’s what brought the FBI and the Sheriff’s Department and Border Patrol Internal Affairs and all these people out to the area.

But as far as suppressing evidence, I think the government is on solid ground here because before the shots were even fired, there are multiple Border Patrol agents that observed Mr. Massey carrying a firearm, and that’s what he’s charged with is possession of a firearm. Even before he was ever detained or questioned, he was seen carrying a firearm on August 29th of 2014.

And the only relevant information or information I’d say that is critical to our prosecution is his identity, who he is, and I don’t believe that can be suppressed, although I think — I think law enforcement behaved accordingly in all respects in connection with this investigation. Even if it was a bad stop or a bad search or — you can’t suppress identity.

Yes, he is correct. If you were a criminal walking down the streets, absent a warrant, could they just stop and arrest you because you are doing something that many others are doing? We are a nation of laws, not of men. Those laws require that certain procedures be followed, even to the point of protecting a criminal — whether he is a criminal, or not. So, since there are no “Wanted Posters” for K. C. Massey, identification becomes a crucial point.

As Hagen said, “there are multiple Border Patrol agents that observed Mr. Massey carrying a firearm”. So, why didn’t they arrest him, then? Could it possibly be that the law, not men, are the rule?

Hagen continues:

I believe Mr. Massey said to Danny Cantu: Look, nobody got hurt. We’d like to — you know, we’re going to be on our way.

Danny Cantu said: Look, a federal agent discharged his weapon. There’s going to be an investigation. Y’all need to stay around.

Earlier, Cantu had said that he thought that the shots had come from the Mexican side of the border. He received radio communication that a federal agent had done the shooting. Why would someone that was very far from the actual shooting be a witness in an investigation?

Let’s keep in mind some recent events of which we are all aware. We have law enforcement people saying that if you don’t want us to shoot you, you had better cooperate. That might be sound advice if one wasn’t subject to persecution because he cooperated, however, if you believe that under state law you have every right to have a firearm on private property, with the permission of the owner, what are you going to do the next time a law enforcement, any law enforcing, officer wants to detain, stop, hold, or even ID you? It is somewhat difficult to reconcile yourself to the idea passive obedience when one realizes that even if they are not violating the law, the feds might use every trick in their toolbox, if they want to persecute or prosecute you.

So, then Hagen says:

Now, Mr. Massey was detained or was in the area for several hours. I think everyone left around 7:00. I think the evidence will show that shots were fired around 3:45.

Note that Hagen has framed the whole event into over 3 hours. This will be addressed more in Act Two, Scene 3.

Now, we move to the first witness, Agent Cantu, in examination by Hagen.

Q All right. Now, did you give any instruction to Mr. Massey after you first encountered him?

A After we encountered them, I asked him and Mr. Varner if they can hang tight. They were missing one of their — their friends that was with them, and I wasn’t sure where exactly he was. Again, I was still in the back of my head, the shots had rang out. They had called for a supervisor. I was trying to make my way down to where the agents needed me, ensuring safety, that everybody was okay. So I asked them to stay by their Kawasaki as I continued down this dirt road.

Q Okay. So you get to the area where the shooting took place. What do you see?

A As I approach, I see Mr. — Mr. Foerster holding a weapon in his hand. It was just hanging down to his side, but he was holding the weapon as an —

***

So as I came down, I saw Mr. Foerster there holding that weapon. I saw the agent, Marco Gonzalez, approaches me as I’m getting close, and he’s telling me that, you know, he shot at Mr. Foerster; that Mr. Foerster turned in his direction with the weapon and he opened fire. And I was trying to get — Foerster started talking, and so I was trying to get everybody to —

Now, according to Cantu’s testimony, he already had their identification, so essentially, they cannot leave. They have to consider that if they do leave, at best, they no longer have any identification, and, at worst, they might be charged for resisting arrest, or some other bogus charge. After all, who would leave their ID with an LEO, if they were free to leave?

Later, he testifies that he, and Massey, knew what had happened before they got to the ATV. That would, of course, make anything Massey knew nothing more than hearsay.

As we got to the ATV, Mr. Foerster started telling Mr. Massey what had occurred…

Cantu continues, in response to Hagen asking him what happened next:

A As soon as we… Mr. Massey tells me: You know, as far as we’re concerned, nobody was injured. We want to go on our way.

Q Okay. And is there a protocol that you need to follow when an officer discharges a weapon?

A Yes. We need to make notifications. We need to investigate why the firearm was discharged.

Q Okay. Now, at this point in time, did you know whether or not Border Patrol Agent Gonzalez had been threatened or whether or not perhaps Border Patrol Agent Gonzalez had irresponsibly fired upon Foerster? Did you know?

A From what I had gathered, he had fired in — from what Mr. Gonzalez told me. Again, this was preliminary. I was trying to — I had to speak with everyone to figure out kind of what was actually happening, so I wasn’t sure at that point.

***

Q Okay. Did you explain to Mr. Massey — and may I ask you this? When Massey said, “We want to leave,” who was he talking about when he — when he mentioned or by the word “we”?

A Well, Mr. Foerster, Varner and himself were inside the Kawasaki, so that to me told me they all wanted to depart.

Cantu knew that Massey and Varner knew no more than he did. The question involved three people, as Cantu puts it. If the majority should be excluded, reason dictates that he should have said that only Foerster had to remain.

Q Okay. So did you explain to them that an investigation was going to be conducted?

A I did.

Q And how did you explain that to them?

A I told them that they weren’t allowed to leave and that we were going to move to a staging area just further up, which is the — this area right here. My initial thought — and the reason I chose this area was to give us distance from the river that was close by. We moved here to stage the vehicles and kind of get a grip of what actually transpired.

Now, they were not allowed to leave. That means that they are not free to go. However, as explained above, they were being good, State law-abiding, cooperative citizens.

Later in testimony:

Q Okay. Now, did you ask Mr. Massey to provide you with an ID?

A I did, sir.

Q At what point in time did you make that request?

A Our initial encounter, as I approached him with Mr. Varner.

Q Okay. And did — did he provide you with an identification?

A He did.

So, it was when Varner and Cantu met up with Massey that the physical (identification papers, please) ability to leave was removed. This singular act sets the stage for the whole drama of whether it was detention or a Terry Stop.

So, let’s keep the stage set. Cantu has the IDs. Rather than return them he, well:

Q And when Sergeant Valerio showed up, did you provide the IDs from Mr. Massey and Mr. Varner to him?

A Yes, sir. I had not been able — had time to conduct any further investigations on those. When I say that, I mean run records. I mean, normally typically run records when we encounter people. I had not had the time. I was attempting to secure everything that — when Mr. Valerio showed up, I handed him the identifications and kind of gave him the rundown of what had occurred, and he took over at that point.

So, if he gave Valerio the “run down”, the Cameron County Sheriff’s Deputy would know that there were only two witnesses to the shooting.

This is cross-examination by Mr. Sorola, and a repeat of part of Scene 1, and brings in the question posed by the Judge:

Q Okay. Later on do you find out who is shot — who is firing a weapon, a firearm?

A Upon approaching [where] Foerster and Mr. Gonzalez [were], yes.

Q And Agent Gonzalez is the only one that discharged a weapon; is that correct?

A At that point, that’s what I was told, yes.

Q And you were told that by Agent Gonzalez, right?

A Correct. And Mr. Foerster attested to that.

THE COURT: And you said at that time. I mean, nothing subsequent to that time has changed that, have they?

THE WITNESS: No, sir, no. It’s just that —

THE COURT: So as far as you know sitting here today, the only weapon that was shot was — the only weapon discharged was discharged by Agent Gonzalez.

THE WITNESS: Correct.

In confirming (that’s what good attorneys do) that Massey and Varner were detained, Mr. Sorola asks:

Q And this is about 3:45 in the afternoon, correct?

A Correct.

Q Now, you testified earlier that you told Mr. Massey he could not leave the area, right?

A Correct.

Q So he wasn’t free to leave.

A No.

Q He had to stay there.

A Yes.

Q What would you have done had he tried to leave?

A I could have detained — placed him in handcuffs, put him in a unit to secure him to prevent him from leaving the area. But he was being cooperative, and none of that was necessary.

Next, we look at whether there was any reason, at all, to believe that Massey and Varner were complicit, or even aware, of the shooting event — other than having heard the shots.

Q And when the shooting occurred, you didn’t take Mr. Varner’s weapon from him, did you?

A No, sir.

Q You didn’t disarm him?

A No.

Q You didn’t frisk him?

A No.

Q When you encountered Mr. Massey, did you check him for firearms?

A Just the one he was carrying, the longarm, the AK47 weapon.

Q But you didn’t take it from him?

A I did not.

***

THE COURT: Okay. But you had no — you obviously didn’t have any reason to think Mr. Massey was the one that had done the shooting because —

THE WITNESS: No, I —

THE COURT: — you went on. You left him there and went on.

THE WITNESS: Correct.

Here is a rather interesting side note, perhaps a contradiction that has to do with “Officer Safety”. At this time, there are just a few agents in the area. The recipient of the shots fired is still armed, as are Massey and Varner. After additional officers arrive, approaching “between 15 and twenty”, it is determined that the weapons must be “secured”, first to the open ATV, then, later, to the back of the BPS “unit” (why don’t they just call it what it is, instead of government double-speak?)

Q Okay. So Mr. Varner and Mr. Massey just tell you out of the clear blue: We also have firearms on us?

A Yes.

Q And you didn’t see these firearms prior to them telling you?

A I did not.

Q But then are you saying that Mr. Varner then handed you the — the firearm that he had?

A Yes, sir.

Q And what did Mr. Massey do?

A Same thing. They both removed the — their pistols and put them in the back of my unit. The pistols were downloaded and placed there with the remainder — with the other rifles.

Back to the subject of this Act, whether they were detained or stopped. Mr. Sorola still questioning:

Q How long was it that Mr. Massey was not free to leave this area?

A In its entirety, sir, or the investigative agency showed up?

Q In its entirety. From 3:45 when shots are fired, when is Mr. Massey free to go?

A He departed — I’m — I can’t tell you exactly who told him it was — after the investigative agency showed up, they began to interview him. And which agency ultimately told him they were done with their interviews, I couldn’t tell you.

Next Witness, Cameron County Sheriff’s Deputy Daniel Valerio. This will be the handoff of the ID cards, though there arises a question (good memories?) of whether there were two, as Cantu said, or three, as Valerio will testify:

Q Okay. Did you observe or did you meet with an individual by the name of Danny Cantu?

A Yes, I did.

Q And did he provide you with any ID cards?

A Yes, he did, with three ID cards from the persons that were there.

Q Okay. Did he provide you with three ID cards or two ID cards?

A As far as I can remember, it was three ID cards.

Q And soon after arriving, did you request criminal histories and a warrant search on the IDs that had been provided to you?

A Yes, that’s correct.

***

Q All right. Now, did you have reason to believe that Mr. Massey had been carrying a weapon or weapons on that date prior to your arrival?

A Yes, I did.

Q Why did you think that?

A I was informed by the — by David Cantu that this — the suspects, the persons that were there, they were carrying these weapons that he had shown me.

Q All right. Did you — when you first arrived, did you think Mr. Massey had committed a crime? And I’m talking about before you ran the criminal history or anything like that. When you first arrived, did you think he had done anything that — where he should be detained or arrested?

A No. I only had the information on the shooting, but we didn’t know at that point in time what actually had happened.

Q Okay. So if Mr. Massey would have asked you when you arrived at 4:18, told you, “I’m getting out of here,” would you have let him go?

A At that point, yes.

Q Okay. Now, after you learned that he had been in possession of a weapon and he had a felony conviction, did your position change on whether or not you would let him go if he would have asked?

A Yes, it changed based on the information I had and his record and him being in possession. It had changed, that he would have been asked to stay.

Now, wouldn’t the Cameron County Sheriff’s Deputy know that after 5 years, Massey could have a firearm? It is suggested, in other testimony, that he knew. In response to Sorola’s questioning:

Q If I have a felony conviction on my record, is it against the law for me to have a firearm?

A It depends if it’s within five years, sir, or not. That’s something that we would have to further — be further looked into.

So, can there be any doubt, even with the hedging, that Valerio knows what Texas law says.

A Prior to his arrival there.

Q Okay. Now, Mr. Massey had a weapon and a felony prior, but is that why you were out there in the Sabal Palms area, to investigation Mr. Massey?

A No. We were out there for the shooting itself.

Q Okay. And what kind of investigation was conducted by the Sheriff’s Department in connection with the shooting?

A The investigation was at the — who — how it happened, who was the one carrying the weapons also, and who was the one that did the shooting, which was Border Patrol involvement.

Then, we have this:

Q All right. Now, did you speak with — towards the end of the shooting investigation, did you speak with your supervisor to determine whether or not you should return the weapons to Mr. Massey, Foerster and Varner or maintain custody of them?

A That’s correct. I spoke to Lieutenant Diaz. And based on the field investigation, he advised that we were going to collect the weapons. We were going to take custody of them for further investigation.

Q Okay. And was that because of the felony convictions?

A Correct. That’s correct.

Then, Mr. Sorola asks:

Q Sergeant, did you ever get a warrant to take possession of the firearms?

A No, I did not.

Q When you arrived at 4:18, was there any emergency? Was the shooting over?

A That’s correct, yes.

Q Well, when you arrived, the firearms were actually in the possession of Border Patrol, right?

A That’s correct.

Q And when you arrived at 4:18, as far as you’re concerned, Mr. Massey was free to leave?

A That’s correct.

Q Do you know if he was under orders from any other law enforcement not to leave?

A No, I did not. I had no knowledge of that.

Q You don’t know?

A I don’t.

Q But at this time, you have his identification card.

A That’s correct.

Q And you have Mr. Varner’s identification card.

A Uh-huh. Yes.

Q Did you give them back to them?

A After I — after I did the inquiry, yes.

So, there was no justification for the Deputy to retain, or take custody of the firearms — even Foerster’s, as it was clear there was no criminal act on their part. And, they were free to go, if they left their ID with the Deputy.

Next on the stand, David Daniel Cordova, FBI Special Agent, being questioned by Hagen, and who testified that he arrived on the scene at about 6:00 PM, fully two hours after BPS had determined that Gonzales was the only shooter.

Q Okay. Why did you interview Mr. Massey?

A Mr. Massey? At the time it was my understanding that he was a witness to a shooting. A Border Patrol agent had discharged a firearm, and so I needed to obtain the details of what happened.

Q Okay. At that time — did you state earlier that you were investigating a possible assault on a federal agent?

A That’s correct.

Q And were you also investigating a possible assault by a federal agent?

A That is correct.

I suppose that there is a reason that he wanted to investigate the possibility that there was an assault on a federal officer. But, based upon what we know, is it at all possible that the known information wasn’t provided Cordova? If not, why wasn’t he informed what had already been provided by the participants in the shooting event.

Regarding the investigation as to whether there was an assault by a federal agent, we have heard nothing as to the results of that investigation, if it was every completed. Since Gonzales has not been charged with anything,, we must assume that the focus was on Massey, not on the shooter, Gonzales.

Just trying to understand how the investigators and government look at this, I suppose that we could compare it to you being two blocks away from a bank robbery, though you heard shots fired. The government then holds you as a witness, detaining you until they have fully satisfied themselves that, based up the eye witnesses to the account, and extensive, intrusive interviews, they determine that you are now, finally, free to go — subject to subsequent arrest because they have to check with their bosses to see how to charge you with a crime that you didn’t commit –under state law.

Another side note, in answer to another question, Cordova says, about Massey, “I ended up interviewing him along with an HSI agent.” HSI is Homeland Security Investigations, part of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Later on:

Q Do you know if any of the other FBI agents, your supervisor or anybody took any?

A One of our TFOs I believe took some photos.

THE COURT: What’s a TFO?

THE WITNESS: Task force officer.

So, why is a Task Force Officer present during the investigation? The only task force that I can find reference to that might want to be involved is the Domestic Terror Task Force (DTTF).

However, back to whether, or not, Massey was detained, we have the Hagen discussion with the judge:

HAGEN: No. I mean, my understanding, the motion to suppress is that the stop was illegal and that the arrest warrant was based on that, which, you know, my argument would be if Your Honor doesn’t like the stop, there’s certainly a good faith exception that would apply to the arrest and the search warrant wherein ATF agents were not present on the 29th relied on.

THE COURT: What are you referring to as “the stop“?

HAGEN: The August 29th encounter.

So, Hagen has to set the distinction that it was a stop, not a detention. You have read the testimony, and it appears quite clear that Hagen is grasping at straws. However, there is more coming in the next “Scene”.

 

Government was intended to govern the government,

not to govern the people.

 

 

Camp Lone Star – Act Two: The Contradictions
Scene 1: Pointing Weapons, or Not Pointing Weapons?

 Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
April 11, 2015

In previous articles, we have discussed the Criminal Complaint, Arrest Warrant, and Search Warrant. In each of those documents, we have a set paragraph, to wit:

On August 29, 2014, United States Border Patrol Agents from the Fort Brown Border Patrol Station, while in performance of their official duties, encountered an armed individual, identified as John Frederick FOERSTER, in the brush. During this encounter, FOERSTER turned and pointed a firearm at a USBP Agent, who intern [sic] fired several shots at FOERSTER. FOERSTER is a member of “Rusty’s Rangers,” an armed citizen militia group patrolling the border of the United States and Mexico.

In each document bears the signature of “Anthony M. Rotunno, Special Agent ATF”. Below that, it states that it was “Sworn to before me and signed in my presence”, that being signed by “United States Magistrate Judge Ronald G. Morgan”. So, we have Rotunno swearing before Morgan that everything he has said is true. So, let’s see what the story is, now.

Hagen, the Prosecuting Attorney, in giving his response to Sorola’s motion, says:

[T]he way this all came about is there was one agent that was in heavy brush, and he was in hot pursuit of aliens. When he came through a clearing, he encountered John Foerster… Mr. Foerster had a weapon. It was an AK47 type pistol. And when the Border Patrol — and this is probably disputed. I don’t think that Mr. Foerster ever aimed or was planning on shooting the Border Patrol agent. But when the Border Patrol agent came through the brush, Foerster turned in his direction, and he was perceived as a threat by the Border Patrol agent who fired several shots at Mr. Foerster, thankfully missing.

The first witness was Danny Cantu, U. S. Border Patrol. Hagen is questioning him.

Q Okay. Now, at this point in time, did you know whether or not Border Patrol Agent [Marco] Gonzalez had been threatened or whether or not perhaps Border Patrol Agent Gonzalez had irresponsibly fired upon Foerster? Did you know?

A From what I had gathered, he had fired in — from what Mr. Gonzalez told me. Again, this was preliminary. I was trying to — I had to speak with everyone to figure out kind of what was actually happening, so I wasn’t sure at that point.

Well, Gonzales, the only witness to the shooting besides Foerster, made no claim that begins to suggest that the weapon was pointed at Gonzales.

In Hagen’s initial statements, he said, “I believe [Massey] made one res gestae statement in connection with the arrest when he was told that they were going to do a search warrant, and that statement was, ‘There’s another gun in the hotel room, but it’s not mine.'” So, he ‘believes’, based upon something that he didn’t articulate, he makes a claim without foundation, setting the stage for the entire government performance. Perhaps it was Divine Inspiration.

Now, res gestae is a legal term which provides an exception to the prohibition of hearsay, and is met when somebody makes a spontaneous statement, closely connected to an event, before the mind has an opportunity to conjure a falsehood. Hagen perhaps, attempted to lay a foundation that Massey “volunteered” the information about a firearm in the motel room. Perhaps the same applies to the initial interview with Gonzales and the failure to report any instance where Foerster “turned and pointed a firearm at a USBP Agent.”

It also begs the question, why did Cantu state that he had to “speak with everyone”, when the sole shooter had already said that he was the sole shooter?

In cross-examination, Mr. Sorola is questioning Cantu:

Q To your knowledge, at any time were any of those weapons [that were taken from the Camp Lone Star volunteers] fired at this shooting?

A The Winchester (Varner’s] was not, as he was speaking with me when the shots were fired.

Q So at the time of this shooting, do you know who’s discharging what weapons?

A No.

Q Okay. Later on do you find out… who is firing a weapon, a firearm?

A Upon approaching… Foerster and Mr. Gonzalez area, yes.

Q And Agent Gonzalez is the only one that discharged a weapon; is that correct?

A At that point, that’s what I was told, yes.

Q And you were told that by Agent Gonzalez, right?

A Correct. And Mr. Foerster attested to that.

THE COURT: And you said at that time. I mean, nothing subsequent to that time has changed… ?

THE WITNESS: No, sir, no. It’s just that —

THE COURT: So as far as you know sitting here today, the only weapon that was shot was — the only weapon discharged was discharged by Agent Gonzalez.

THE WITNESS: Correct.

So, Cantu knew, the moment that he was able to speak with Gonzales, that no other weapon was fired, except Gonzales’. And, he makes no mention of any pointing or aiming by Foerster.

From that point on, there is no further discussion of pointing because the shooter, Marco Gonzales, after making initial statement, lawyered up, and Foerster has also refused to talk.

Q Okay. Was he [Agent Marco Gonzales, the shooter] going to visit with anybody? Was he going to talk about what happened?

A No. They — we were informed that he was not going to provide a statement out there.

Q All right. And who gave you that information?

A Let me see. Mr. Gerardo Reyes “Rey” Gonzalez.

Q Okay.

A He was the one who informed me that Agent Gonzalez was not going to provide a statement. He was the union leader.

So, though the agents are employees of the Border Patrol, and I’m sure that they are required, as a part of their duties, to file reports on any incidents, especially an officer involved shooting, and the union can “void” that obligation. It kinda makes you wonder who runs BPS — the government, or the union.

Now, since Gonzales has hidden behind the law and his union, it would appear that he has something to hide. Though we have not heard Foerster’s side of the story, he has not been charged with any criminal activity related to the shooting event, only that he was charged, like Massey, with felony possession of a firearm, and has plead guilty to that charge.

Massey is also charged with felony in possession of a firearm and has, rightfully, plead not guilty. He was not apprehended in the commission of a crime, nor did he have any knowledge of any crime, except what he heard during the course of the investigation. He was not even a witness to the crime of the discharge of a firearm by an agent of the government.

So, let’s try to be objective as we look at this “scene”. We have an affidavit, sworn to by Rotunno, in front of a judge. His claims of the weapon being pointed at the Agent flies in the face of what Gonzales and Foerster told the other investigators. Even the prosecuting attorney, Mr. Hagen, says that he doubts that a firearm was pointed at the agent. That was a bald-faced lie on the part of Rotunno, and he was never even at the scene of the shooting. That smells, very strongly, of Perjury.

However, if you lie to a government agent during the course of an investigation, you are subject to 18 US Code § 1001, and subject to 5 years in prison.

Then, we have the only one that committed a possible criminal act who only made some statements to others, before the union got him to lawyer-up.

However, who is the government going after? K. C. Massey, neither Gonzales for shooting at Foerster nor Rotunno for lying in a sworn statement.

It appears that we have returned to that era in history where “The King can do no wrong”. And, the King includes his, not our, public servants.

Government should not be theoretically defensible,

it should be the object of general acceptance.

Camp Lone Star – Act One: The Government Charade

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
March 31, 2015

Yesterday, when Massey arrived at the courthouse, there were about twenty agents in battle gear and a number of DHS Suburbans parked in front of the courthouse. After going in to the courthouse, he had to visit the Pre-Trial Services. There, he was approached by two agents who wanted to see his sunglasses. They inspected them, thoroughly, and then returned them to Massey. I suppose this is the future — what we can expect because of Google-Glasses. However, finding that they were not dangerous, they were returned to their owner.

At 1:30, he arrived at the hearing. Massey’s attorney, Louis Sorola, read his motion to Suppress Evidence and the Motion to Dismiss. The US Attorney, Hagen, then presented oral arguments against the two motions. Apparently, as we will see later, Hagen failed to address all of the pertinent parts of the motions.

Then, BPS agent Cantu testified. Now, Cantu was there shortly after the shooting took place. There were only two witnesses to the shooting, John (Jesus) Foerster and BPS agent Gonzales. Foerster has pled guilty to the charge of felony possession, though he has yet to be sentenced. Perhaps he is in acting school, being prompted on what his testimony will be if Massey ever goes to trial.

Gonzales has been conspicuously absent, throughout this whole ordeal. However, he is the only one on the government side that was witness to the shooting. However, this cannot be a bar to introducing testimony as to what happened that afternoon, so Cantu testified as if he were present and observed the shooting. I think that is most often referred to as hearsay evidence, and if someone not on the government side presented it, would probably not be allowed. However, Cantu asserts that the weapon was pointed at the agent before he fired at Foerster. Foerster placed, or dropped, his weapon to the ground. Cantu testified than when he arrived, Foerster was holding his weapon and Cantu then took the weapon from him.

So, let’s see, according to the government line, Foerster pointed the weapon toward Gonzales, Gonzales fired, from about thirty feet away, five shoots, all of them missing Forester. Foerster places the gun on the ground, and because of the sound of the shooting, people begin to gather. Cantu arrives and Foerster is holding his weapon — wait, you mean Gonzales, after a shooting incident, let Foerster pick up his loaded weapon? This is almost unbelievable — that Foerster was allowed to carry the weapon until Cantu arrived to join him and Gonzales. Gee, in movies, and even on Cop Block, they always kick the weapon away from the bad guy, even when he is dead.

Okay, on to the next fantasy. As was reported previously (Camp Lone Star – More like Wonderland), they have claimed that Massey was not detained, since if he was detained, they would have to read him his Miranda Rights. So, Cantu takes Massey’s driver’s license, which will not be returned until the end of the investigation by even more government agents, hours later. Cantu also stated that if Massey tried to leave, he would have “cuffed” him and put him in the back of his vehicle. But, remember, now Massey was not detained (he just wasn’t allowed to leave).

Next witness is Sheriff’s Deputy Valerio. He testified that Massey’s driver’s license was handed to him when he arrived. He said that Massey was “free to go”, though he never gave Massey his driver’s license. Massey doesn’t recall anybody, at any time, telling him that he was free to go until the ordeal was over.

Final witness, FBI Special Agent Cordoba. He admits that there was a criminal investigation going on. However, the criminal, if there was one, would only be the person that shot at another person. It is difficult to believe that the criminal is the person that was shot at, and the investigation was directed at Massey and Foerster instead of Gonzales.

Cantu was reading from a notepad, which was not provided through discovery, nor was Massey’s attorney even aware of its existence. Surely agent Gonzales had to prepare a written report, so, that, too, will be made available. And, finally, we may get to see the weapons audit and chain of evidence on the only gun fired that day.

All three witnesses testified that Massey was on private property, which would make possession of a weapon legal under Texas law. So, here we have that conflict that was addressed in Camp Lone Star – Massey & The Clash of Laws.

At the close of the hearing, Hanen gave the government the opportunity to file an additional response, since they failed to address some portions of the motions. I suppose that it will also give them some time to ‘imagineer” (that’s a Disney term for those who make up stories) some effort to cover up what has been uncovered, though I doubt that they are able to undo the damage they have already done to their case. The government has until April 10 to file their amendment/response. The Sorola has until the 17th to respond to the government’s feeble effort to try to make their story believable.

An observation: Judge Hanen is being extremely lenient with the government in allowing them to try to get their story straight. However, with the discrepancies so far, it is nearly inconceivable that they can extricate their falsehoods and come up with a cohesive story supported by the evidence — some yet to be seen by the Accused and his attorney. Perhaps the Judge will find that even the lower levels of government are as prone to lying as those in the high chairs of the Administration.

Camp Lone Star – Who is K. C. Massey?

Gary Hunt
Outpost of Freedom
March 29, 2015

Shortly after K. C. Massey was arrested, I spoke with him and we discussed the fact that he was a felon. He explained that he had turned his life around. So, I asked him to write a bit about his past — what went wrong and how he turned it around. However, before we get to what he had to say, when you read this, keep in mind that prison is supposed to be a rehabilitation system, not a means of vengeance or revenge. Any articles about recidivism show that those returning to prison usually do so within a few years. They never want to talk about those who have rehabilitated, whether a product of the system, or simply because they chose to change their own lives and live an exemplary life.

Now, Massey’s life, in his own words:

I was born in 1966, in Chicago, Illinois, while my father was stationed in the Army on Lake Michigan at a NIKE missile base.

We moved to Texas in 1968. I was raised in a small East Texas community of Palestine until the 3^rd grade. My father was transferred to Dallas to work in the dispatch office of Xerox, after he had been seriously injured in an automobile accident and was unable to perform his normal duty as a Xerox repairman. This was a big culture shock and a very difficult time for me. I had been raised a small town country boy now thrust into big city life and schools.

We moved to an area known as Pleasant Grove an east Dallas area. The name did not equate to the life I was introduced to there. I was a rough crime ridden area of Dallas. As a young white country boy, I was out of place from day one. I remember being chased to and from the bus stop to school and being bullied almost daily. It caused problems for me at home. My dad was always busy working while my mother was a stay at home mom. We were not doing financially well due to my father’s accident and transfer to Dallas after a lengthy recovery from his accident. My mother handmade our clothes and most of my belongings at the time were second hand. That was a cause of ridicule from the neighborhood kids making the bullying against me worse. In the fifth grade my parents transferred me to a Montessori school outside of our neighborhood for 2 reasons. One was to get me away from the bullies in my neighborhood and 2, was to get a “Better education” since I had tested as “Talented and Gifted”. This was a terrible time for me as I was one of about 6 white kids in this all black school in an all-black neighborhood. The bullying got worse causing me to act out at home in a very negative way. My parents didn’t understand the issues at school and thought I was just acting out. My parents in an effort to help me had me sent to Salesmanship Boys Camp.

Salesmanship Boys Camp is for incorrigible youths where you are away from home 28 days a month. The program setting is in the East Texas woods with very few modern conveniences. We lived in self-constructed tents made entirely by hand, The tents were constructed of pine trees we hand cut and skinned, notched and hand doweled together. The tents were covered by tarps we hand-cut and grommeted and then stretched over the pine structures. We had no electricity and only had running water from one hose bib. Our lights were kerosene lanterns; our heat during the winter was potbellied stoves. Our latrine was a hole we hand dug and built a box over it. We had a mile or so hike to take showers. We cut at least 2 cords of wood a year for cooking and heating. All the wood was harvested with handsaws and axes. Our group consisted of 10 “troubled” boys and 2 men councilors. We lived, ate, showered, and slept in these primitive conditions year around. I was there for almost 2 years (6^th and 7^th grade).

After coming home from Salesmanship Camp my family problems were not better and we still lived in the same neighborhood. Again, my parents tried to send me to a school listed as an “Academy” to provide me with a better educational environment. It was the same problem as before. I was one of a handful of white kids in an all-black school in an all-black neighborhood. By now I had become more hardened and began to act out criminally. I had two other siblings, a special needs sister and a brother five years younger than me. I was always in trouble and my mother couldn’t deal with me. I ran away from home all the time to go hang out with my criminal friends. It was easier for me to fit in with them than to be the “Smart obedient “child who got bullied. My freshman year of high school my parents again tried to send me to a good high school, out of my district, again in a non-white area. This led me to skip school and in general be a thug. By the 10^th grade my parents had just about given up on me. I was left in the care of the Dallas juvenile system. I was placed in the Dallas County Boys home. I was there for almost 2 years (10^th-11^th grade). This was a very difficult time in my life. All the people around me were criminals and I only had one choice as I saw it. Be a victim or be a victimizer. The victimizer was an easier role and one of less victimization. My record while in placement reflected that. I went back to the Boys home to visit about 10 years later and I was vividly remembered by the staff that was still there.

After I was released back to my parents to return to my neighborhood High School I never fit in. I didn’t grow up with most of them so I was like an outsider. The only friends I was able to make were the thug kids who had been through similar situations. Thus my life of “Big Boy” crime began. At first we were doing vandalism and petty thefts etc. Then I started selling and doing drugs, from there I graduated to home invasions and vehicle thefts. I was arrested in 1986 for my first burglary. I was given probation and I was homeless. My parents wanted nothing to do with me because I had become everything they couldn’t stand, and everything they had raised me NOT to be. I continued on my life of crime and personal destruction. By 1988 I thought I had moved up in the crime world, I was not actually committing thefts but I was buying stolen property and paying the thieves in cash instead of drugs. I thought I was doing good. Was I ever sadly mistaken. By this time I had a job and a car and a place to live. That all came crashing down too. I was arrested and shown all the pawn tickets I had cashed in linking me directly to the thieves and stolen merchandise. Since I was already on probation for the burglary in 1986 and at the time burglary carried a penalty of 5-Life, I took the offer by the Dallas DA of 5 years TDC. It was the best deal I could hope to get. At the time Texas prisons were severely overcrowded and most people were only doing a month on the year for their sentence I thought I’d be out in 5 months. Well not me, I wound up doing 9 months on my 5-year sentence. It was a very trying time for me personally, but I learned more about myself in those 9 months than I had in the previous 22 years. I learned I had mental strengths and determination to make it through more than I ever thought I could. I had to work in the fields with literally bloodied hands that hurt so bad I couldn’t close my fists. I had no skin left on my hands yet I had to wield a hoe every day. I endured times when I just knew I was gonna pass out from pain and exhaustion. I learned I was way stronger than I had ever imagined. This was my catalyst for changing my life. Never before had any member of my family been to prison. I felt ashamed for tarnishing my family’s name. I never wanted to lose my freedom and rights again.

When I was paroled from prison, I struck out on a journey to find myself. Right out of prison I was fired up to make something of myself. After being out of prison for a year or so, I still didn’t know what I wanted to be or do. It was hard finding a job, or getting people to trust me. The only people I seemed to connect with were criminals and drug addicts. I started abusing cocaine. I still remember very vividly the last time I did cocaine. It was in 1991 around January/February. We were all sitting around getting high on cocaine and all of the sudden my entire body went numb. My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest. My “friends” all looked at me and were like, Aww man we got to go. They left me alone to die on that couch a dope head. I closed my eyes and I prayed to God and asked him to save me and spare my life. I swore that if I lived through this I would never ever do dope again. I closed my eyes and woke up the next day perfectly fine. I have never touched dope again.

My life didn’t get better overnight but God opened doors for me to allow me to escape that life and fate. I spent the next few years trying to stay positive and sober.

I met my beautiful wife in December of 1992. My life started taking shape. In early 1993 we learned she was pregnant. Around the same time my ex-girlfriend told me she was pregnant, too. What a shocker for me. I was not really prepared for kids but God put it on me so I had to become ready. I had always told myself if I ever had kids, I would never let my kids go down the road I did. I would do everything possible to give them a childhood I never had.

I was in the summer of 1995 a guy I had recently met was starting a new electrical contracting company and he wanted it to be high-tech. Khristy’s grandmother liked me and wanted to help me get a good career so she bought me my first computer. I liked computers and I had studied computer programming in prison. I spent countless hours teaching myself computers. So when Jerry asked me to help him with his new company, it was my first real computer job. We primarily did electric installations for swimming pools and spas. After I got all the companies networked and a website going there wasn’t much to do at the office. So I decided instead of just sitting around the office I would learn about electrical work.

I found my passion. I don’t know why, but I really loved doing electrical work. I enjoyed working hard sweating more than sitting in an office doing computers. The guys were eager to teach me but they didn’t understand why I wanted to be in the field doing labor when I could be in the A/C taking it easy. That earned me respect among the electricians. It all seemed so easy to me to do electrical work.

Skip forward several years, we moved to rural Hunt County, Texas. I was raising my stepson and my son living the simple country life. My boys were going to a school where K-12 was on one campus on about 10 acres of land.

One day I got a call from my daughter who was now 10. Her mother was going to prison and she had no other family than me to go to. Going back 5 years or so while my daughters Grandma was alive, my wife and I had let Ruth (Grandma) and my stepdaughter and my daughter come live with us. The girl’s mother had always struggled with addiction, one of the reasons she and I couldn’t make it together. Grandma and the girls had lived with my wife and our 2 boys for about a year, Khristy and I told her the girls could stay but she had to get a job to help support herself or she had to go. She showed her gratitude by soliciting my X’s current boyfriend to rob our house. He stole about $30K worth of personal belongings and cash from us. It took about a week for my police friends to discover who had committed the burglary. By that time Grandma and the girls were gone. I didn’t see them again for about 5 years.

Back to the call from Jessica my daughter. I went immediately to pick her up from over 70 miles away. They girls were staying with an old alcoholic man who had other dope head men living there. I took my daughter that day despite the objections of “Hag”. My daughter I found out was out of juvenile pending a court case for assault on another girl her age. I had to get a lawyer and go to court with my daughter for the assault case. The judge gave me custody of her and put her on probation. Her mother was still waiting for transport to prison.

When Jessica came to live with me, she was everything I had raised my boys NOT to be. She was a thief and she would rather lie than tell the truth even if the truth served her better. She reminded me of me when I was a kid. It broke my heart. I remember telling myself if I ever had a kid, no matter what I would never give up on my kid. I would do everything possible to be there for them. Well she was my true test of my resolve. My wife and daughter did not get along at all. My boys didn’t want her there because she was taking from them in their eyes. It was a true personal battle for me. My motto had been since the early 90’s “actions speak louder than words”. A thought first introduced to me by my father. I kept thinking I can’t give up on her. I have to pull my family together, it is my job as the man of the house and as the leader of my family. It was definitely a struggle of epic proportions. In the end, I won. I stuck with my convictions and I did change my daughter’s life. She is the ONLY female in her family going back at least 4 generations to not be pregnant by 16. She was the only one in her family to not have a bout with addictions and only the second next to my stepdaughter to graduate high school. With an A/B Honor roll with my son Kory. She went on to join the US Marine Corps and she is a very loved and respected member of our family and community. In just 2 years as a Marine she has obtained the rank of NCO Corporal. I could not be prouder of her.

My oldest “Step” son Taylor. I have been in his life since he was 3 years old. One of my earliest and cutest moments of him is when I was working on the sprinkler system in our yard, I was covered in sweat. He looked at me puzzled and said, “Why you have cry on you face?” Taylor was diagnosed with Leukemia when he was 3 ½ years old. That was a very painful yet turned out to be a joyful time for us. It was painful to watch a 3-year-old child go through 2 years of Chemo and constant hospital visits. I hated having to make him take shots and seeing the pain and fear in his eyes. It was very hard for us and it is still painful for me to think about. Thank God for his healing power and modern medicine. Taylor is now a healthy 25-year-old man. He is a body builder that can bench press 500 pounds. He has graduated from personal trainer school and massage therapy school. He has a good career opportunity working for one of my electrical supply companies.

Kory is my youngest son. He is my joy too. He is a very caring and independently driven young man. He is the stereotypical good ol country boy. He has always been a very hard worker who takes great pride in everything he does. He is a joy to have as a son, he is always trying to do more and to be better. He followed in my footsteps as an electrician. He has taken the initiative to learn and always get better at whatever he does. He is an honest and very hard working young man who makes me very proud to say I am his father.

I am very blessed man to have the children I do. I am very proud of them. I am glad to have raised them to be good citizens who care about more than just themselves.

About my wife, Khristy is an angel sent from God. She has been my stability and my driving force. She has been my inspiration to be who I am today. She is the one who made me realize how wonderful life can be. She has made me happier and sadder than any human I know. She is my world, and I can’t give enough thanks to God for her and what she means to me and my life and to the successes I have had as a man, a father and a business man. I owe her my entire life, because without her I don’t think I would be half the man I am today. She is far better than I ever deserved and I know she is my direct gift from God.

Due to the blessings bestowed upon me in my life’s struggles, I have been able to reach people and be an example of how life can change for the better if you work for it and want it to happen. I have spent most of my adult life trying to mentor both young and old. I have tried to lead by example and through my actions, not my words. I have been recognized for my charitable deeds by Habitat for Humanity and by the National Rebuilding for America organization. I have been politically involved in my community as well as involved with other charitable groups like Lowes Heroes. I take great pride in “Giving Back” to my community. I have donated equipment for my local sheriff’s office to help keep them safe in high risk situations and I have also donated equipment to my local police departments to help them be more efficient. I have donated time and resources for my local Volunteer Fire Dept. and my home city of Quinlan. I take great pride in being able to give back to the country that has given me the opportunity to succeed due to my efforts.

I am a True Constitutional Patriot who wholly and completely supports our founding fathers vision for this country. I do firmly believe in America, we are only limited by our own efforts. My latest contribution to my country and state was to spend 4 months deployed to the Texas/Mexico border doing the job our Federal government refuses to do. I have personally helped turn back several hundred illegal invaders from various countries, while helping to serve the community of Brownsville. Local law enforcement and even Federal Agents told us that we had made a big difference in crimes against property and the people of Brownsville. We were told at one point there was an 80% reduction in property crime due to our work on the border. We treated any illegal we detained with dignity and we gave them food and water while waiting on Border Patrol to pick them up.

While I am suffering a heavy-handed persecution from my own Federal Government for my service on the border, I would do it all over again. I love these United States!

Thus ends what Massey had written, though there is more to the story. Those who have worked with Massey know him for what he is. In that light, they have written letters in support of Massey and to acknowledge what he has meant to their communities:

Honorable Donny Brock, Mayor, Quinlan, Texas

Chris Dewey, Police Officer, Farmersville Independent School District Police Department

Dr. Graham Sweeny, Superintendent, Boles Independent School District

 

C. Massey is a man among patriots.

More Outpost of Freedom articles about K. C. Massey

 

 

Shortly after I posted Camp Lone Star – More like Wonderland, K. C. Massey provided me with his analysis of the Response by the government to his motions for suppressing evidence and dismissal. I have made minor edits for clarification. Otherwise, these are Massey’s own evaluation of the Response.

In all fairness, if anybody from the government side wants to rebut, or refute, either Massey’s or my post, I will be happy to accommodate them.

Massey says:

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

BP agent, Marcos Gonzales, was pursuing a group of illegal aliens when he encountered an armed Foerster in heavy brush. BP agent Gonzales perceived Foerster as an armed and immediate threat when Forester pointed the weapon he was carrying at Gonzales who was emerging from the brush. Gonzales fired four or five shots which did not strike Foerster. Foerster was armed with 7.62X39mm pistol which contained a vertical fore grip and was slung around his neck. The shots were fired at approximately 3:45 P.M.

This is UNTRUE. We had been to only 3 crossing sites when we encountered the dismounted BP approximating the time to be no later than 3:00p approx 15 minutes into the assistance of the BP the shots rang out. Making the shooting closer to 3:15. The firearms audit investigation did not determine whether it was 4 or 5 shots. The original reports as issued by Border Patrol information officer Zamora to the press August 29th NEVER stated Foerster “Pointed” his weapon at the Agent, only he turned with it in his hands. How do you “Sling” a pistol around your neck? What is the point of mentioning what Foerster did or possessed have to do with me who was not at the scene? I also posted my account of the incident at https://www.facebook.com/kevin.kc.massey/posts/839070526105377 on Aug 30, 2014. That is my recount of the story, written just after it happened.

Senior Border Patrol agent Danny Cantu was nearby, heard the shots and secured the scene for investigation by Federal and/or State law enforcement. Cantu was not certain if the shooting was on State or Federal land and contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigations and the Cameron County Sheriff’s Office. Cantu requested Foerster to accompany him away from the river bank to an open area, “staging area”, approximately 100 yard away.

The staging area was over 200 yards away, and we were asked to move there due to illegals still in the area moving toward our position. He commanded myself and Varner to go to the staging area. Foerster rode on the mule to the interview site with us! We were told since it was private property the Sheriff had to be notified to investigate. Cantu KNEW we were on private property, they called the Game Warden to determine if we had trespassed on federal land prior to the shooting is what the Game Warden stated to me, which he was able to confirm we had not. They said the federal Agents had to investigate since it was a shooting by a federal agent. The picture, below, has the approximate locations of the shooting and interview area, on the right side.

Foerster was angry and wanted to fight BP agent Gonzales. Defendant, Massey, wanted to leave the area.

Foerster was angry because he was just shot AT by a BP Agent after we had been asked to assist the dismounted BP agent and the shooting was unprovoked. I NEVER asked to leave the area, that was the decision of Cantu!!! He said since there were still illegals in the area we needed to move locations. We stated we did not want to “press charges” for the shooting by BP, but BP said they had to conduct an investigation since a federal agent had discharged his firearm.

Cantu told Massey all members of his group must remain until shooting was investigated. Cantu requested that all members of Rusty’s Rangers disarm while the investigation was conducted.

This is another LIE Cantu NEVER requested we “disarm” We voluntarily decided to leave weapons on the mule after we moved to the staging area.

Massey turned over a handgun and rifle which was secured in a Border Patrol vehicle during the investigation. Foerster relinquished the pistol he was carrying and the third member of Rusty’s Rangers relinquished a pistol and a rifle. The weapons were all secured in a Border Patrol vehicle.

Cantu TOOK Foerster’s gun after Gonzalez shot at him which Foerster had laid on the ground. My and Varner’s weapons were left on the mule. It was articulated to us “For officer safety” and due to “Illegals in the area” BP wanted to remove our weapons from the mule along with my GoPro Camera and other personal equipment and “secure” them in the BP vehicle for our “safety”.

During the investigation criminal histories were requested that indicated that Massey and Forester had felony convictions. The pistol carried by Forester was believed to be a prohibited weapon due to the addition of the fore grip. CCSO officials decided to keep possession of the weapons pending further investigation.

The sheriff’s office DID NOT articulate any cause or reason for taking and keeping our arms, even after protest by myself and Varner. We were never given a receipt for the Arms or other equipment they took from the mule. The sheriff took possession of the Arms only 15 minutes or so before we were released from detention.

Massey and Forester were allowed to leave the scene and all officials departed by 7:00 PM.

Again another LIE, we were released from detention at approx 8:15 pm. We were detain nearly 5 hours and were not free to go.

Massey was not provided Miranda warnings during the investigation. Massey was never handcuffed and cooperated in surrendering his weapons and providing statements.

Only after BP and FBI, and HSI and CC Sheriff insisted we make statements even after we stated we (Varner and myself) were NOT witnesses to the shooting and had NO pertinent information. We gave statements under protest. We did not “surrender” the Arms, they insisted for officer safety that they be secured in the BP vehicle.

It was reasonable for BPA Cantu to disarm Massey and tell him he could not leave the area where the shooting occurred. Police are allowed to stop and briefly detain persons for…

“Briefly” is defined as 5 hours?

investigative purposes if the police have a reasonable suspicion supported by articulable facts that criminal activity may be afoot.

We were never informed. “We”, Foerster, Varner or myself, were not under any investigation for ANY crimes. The only criminal activity was the unprovoked shooting at a civilian, that were there at the request and in assistance of the BP.

Texas Penal Code Section 46.02 Unlawfully Carrying Weapons (a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly carries on or about his person a handgun, illegal knife, or club if the person is not: (1) On the person’s own premises or premises under the person’s control  

The property was under our control by permission of the conservator for patrol and illegal immigrant deterrence and for cleaning, marking and clearing of illegal crossings. We had permission for 24 hour access to the property in which we routinely camped out on the border.

The CCSO was informed by Border Patrol agents about the shooting and the seizure of weapons. CCSO deputies made the decision to maintain custody of the weapons after it was revealed that Massey had provided Forester a weapon and that Massey and Forester both had criminal histories that included felony convictions.

We were told the weapons were being held for investigation pertaining to the BP shooting, not for any criminal causes relating to us. They confiscated Varner’s weapons and did not return his although he was NOT a felon. The above statement says the weapons were seized, yet earlier statement says they were voluntarily surrendered. Which is it? They had the Arms in the BP vehicle PRIOR to knowing any prior history of Foerster or me.

Statements obtained from Massey were not the product of custodial interrogation. Massey was never handcuffed, placed in a police vehicle or moved away from the staging area.

I was held under protest due to investigation of BP Gonzales illegal discharge of his firearm at Foerster for approx 5 hours. I was in custodial arrest/detention, I was not free to go despite several requests to leave due to my NON involvement and lack of knowledge in the shooting incident and me NOT witnessing anything since I was in a covered position on the river bank at the time of the shooting. Varner and I were over 75 yards away from the shooting through a lot of heavy brush.

Massey was interviewed by an FBI agent for approximately 35-40 minutes. Massy was not arrested and was allowed to leave the area as soon as questioning concluded.

I was questioned by Border Patrol, FBI and Homeland Security and the Sheriff’s office. Questioning lasted approx 30 minutes by each agency. We were not free to go until over an hour after the last “Interview” after approx 5 hours of forced detention.

The questioning took place on the side of a dirt road. Massey was cooperative during questioning and agreed to answer most of the questions asked of him. Massey did not want to provide his social security number and the FBI agent agreed he did not have to provide the number.

Massy and the FBI agent were cordial to one another with Massy indicating he appreciated the need to ask questions because he knew law enforcement officers.

What is the point of the above statement? Notice the misspellings? Why the reference to my social number? If they read the investigation report enough to see I didn’t give up my social security number, what couldn’t they determine the other facts of the case like the firearms audit of the BP agent to determine how many shots were fired?

Massey was not the focal point of the investigation;

Previously they said I was the focal point of an investigation of felon in possession of a firearm in violation of Texas law. Why were the federal agents detaining me for a possible state law violation?

agents were primarily concerned with circumstances surrounding the shooting between Forester and BPA Gonzales. Custody for Miranda purposes requires a greater restraint on freedom than seizure under the fourth amendment. United States v. Cavazos, 668 F.3d 190,193 (5th Cir. 2012). “A suspect is … ‘in custody’ for Miranda purposes when placed under formal arrest or when a reasonable person in the suspect’s position would have understood the situation to constitute a restraint on freedom of movement of the degree which the law associates with formal arrest. United States v. Begivanga, 845 F.2d 593, 596 (5th Cir. 1988).

Again notice the inconsistency of their statement “agents were primarily concerned with Foerster” Yet they took the arms from myself and Varner who were not involved in the shooting in any way, as defined by Blacks Law 8th – Physical Custody; Custody of a person whose freedom is directly controlled or limited. Detention; The act or fact of holding a person in custody; Confinement or compulsory delay. Investigative detention; the holding of a suspect without a formal arrest during the investigation of the suspects participation in a crime. Detention of this kind is constitutional only if probable cause exists. Arrest; 2.The taking or keeping of a person in custody by legal authority. The term “formal arrest” is not defined.

In the instant case Massey was told, By BPA Cantu, to remain in the staging area while the shooting was investigated. Massey was allowed to leave after he was questioned. Massey was never in custody.

I was held against my will and under protest for approx 5 hours. I was not “allowed to leave after questioning” for almost an hour after the last of 4 interviews. I was in custody under arrest although not under restraints. I asked if we were free to go several times, prior to and after each interview. I was held in a “custodial arrest” and I was not free to leave. I was in custody (physical custody) as defined by Blacks Law.