Shelbey Brian
Comp 1.
OKC Alfred P. Murrah Building Bombing
On April 19th, 1995 a horrific terrorist attack on U.S. soil took place in the heartland of Oklahoma. The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma was targeted and was completely blown to pieces by one gigantic homemade bomb. The unimaginable had happened at the starting of a typical day at work. This day would be forever commemorated for the rest of America's history, unlike any other day until 9/11, as a prominent attack on the government of the United States.
At 9:03 a.m. a massive bomb resting inside a rented Ryder truck destroyed half of the nine story federal building in downtown Oklahoma City. Within moments, the surrounding area looked like a
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The keys to that truck were found in the alley. In addition, testimony proclaimed that McVeigh was stopped 1 ½ hours after the bombing; explosive residue was found on ear plugs inside his vehicle; he had an envelope packed with newspaper clippings and papers with revolutionary writings; he wore a tee-shirt with the slogan: "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants."(Wilmsen & Simpson, 1997).
The trial for Terry Nichols had a different result compared to the one for McVeigh. Nichols' trial took place after McVeigh's trial. On December 24th 1997, the jury found Nichols not guilty in 10 of the 11 original charges against him. He was found guilty of one charge of conspiracy and eight lesser charges of involuntary manslaughter. The jury deadlocked as how to sentence Nichols and left it up to the judge (Gorov, 1998). On June 5th 1998 the judge, US District Court Judge Richard P. Matsch, gave the 43-year-old Nichols a life sentence for his role in the bombing (Haynes, 1998).
The bombing was quickly solved, but the investigation turned out to be one of the most exhaustive in FBI history. No stone was left unturned to make sure every clue was found and all the culprits identified. By the time it was over, the Bureau had conducted more than 28,000 interviews, followed some 43,000 investigative leads, amassed three-and-a-half tons of evidence, and reviewed nearly a billion pieces of information. In the
The Oklahoma City Bombing would be considered the worst terrorist attack on America prior to the 9/11 World Trade Center attack. Just outside of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, on April 19th, 1995 a truck exploded, killing 168 people. 19 of those 168 being children. The explosion caused damage to 300 surrounding buildings. Oklahoma City was going through a tragedy and needed guidance from a leader.
The main reason that Timothy McVeigh was investigated for his involvement into the Oklahoma City Bombing was because he had been arrested for possessing and transporting a loaded handgun that was found being stopped for no license plate on his vehicle. This happened only within 90 minutes of the explosion after he had left the Murrah Federal Building. Evidence linked McVeigh and Terry Nichols to the attack and Nichols was arrested later. Nichols was linked to assisting in the stealing and purchasing of the bomb materials along with McVeigh that they stored in storage lockers. McVeigh rented the Ryder truck under an alias and drove it to the Murrah Federal Building on the day of the bombing. Terry Nichols parked a getaway car several blocks
When it came to the evidence and forensics involved with the Oklahoma City bombing, there was a plethora of items to be used against Timothy McVeigh to show his guilt. To prove McVeigh’s guilt, the prosecution needed a motive. This was not going to be hard to do when McVeigh himself was so outspoken against the federal government. As stated earlier, McVeigh was upset regarding Ruby Ridge and also the raid at the Branch Davidian compound. But McVeigh also had what was known as the “Turner Diaries”, which were antigovernment leaflets that the prosecution stated were blueprints for the bombing ("Prosecutors almost through", 1997). McVeigh’s very own sister also testified against him stating how angry he was at the government, and that he was
Tim McVeigh was not coerced into bombing the Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City, nor do I believe he suffered from a mental disease. On April 19, 1995 Timothy, who was an ex-solider, decided to bomb a federal building. He rented a Ryder truck and parked the vehicle in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Tim was fully aware of the damage the bomb would cause, which was made out of hazardous cocktail of agricultural fertilizer, diesel fuel and several other potent chemicals. The explosion of that powerful bomb resulted in the killing of one hundred sixty-five innocent people, destruction of more than three hundred buildings, leaving almost six hundred individuals wounded. Shortly after the mass murder of numerous individuals,
McVeigh, before joining the military, already had a long history in the survivalist movement. The Survivalist movement is well known by the federal government for its anti-government activities and beliefs, McVeigh shared these beliefs and was set off after the
On May 24th 1988 Timothy took a huge step to fulfill his dream of becoming a member of the United States Special Forces. In Basic training McVeigh met an individual named Terry Nichols, Nichols was much older than most of the recruits and held his own pretty well. McVeigh and Nichols became close friends and even got stationed at Fort Riley Kansas Together. Kifner, John. (1995). Terry Nichols was one of the master minds behind the attack of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. As stated by former FBI agent "These two are birds of a feather. Each feeds off the other 's inadequacies." McVeigh and Nichols would later deploy to Iraq to fight in the Gulf War where McVeigh served as a Bradley Gunner. During his time in Iraq McVeigh was awarded the combat Infantry badge and a bronze star. Kifner, (1995).
Timothy McVeigh was quoted the famous poem, Invictus, saying “I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul”. McVeigh believed in many things; one being that government was planning to strip it’s citizens of their rights. As McVeigh hatred for the government grew so did the outcome of his actions. After the Waco Siege massacre, which involved the accidental burning of an isolated compound that took the lives of seventy-six members of a religious cult in Texas, McVeigh wrath against the government was boiling. It was at this time that McVeigh planned to carry out one of the worst terrorist attacks ever on US soil. It is often told that in the last moments of someone’s life remorse and shame are visibly expressed on an individual 's face; however, in the execution of domestic terrorist, Timothy McVeigh, that was not the case.
The bombing plot most likely involved the device to detonate over the ocean to cover up evidence. Unforeseen delays on takeoff resulted in the plane exploding over Lockerbie, Scotland. As a responding international law enforcement agency, it will be vital to gather and isolate all forensic evidence in a central location that provides a sterile environment. Teams must cover the crash zone to find fragments that will identify what explosive was used, and what sort of timing device was
On the morning of April 19, 1995 Timothy McVeigh parked a Ryder rental truck packed with explosives outside of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building more than ready to commit a mass execution that would change the state of Oklahoma forever. Until September 11, 2001 the Oklahoma City Bombing was the most vicious terrorist attack to happen in the United States. As rescue operations were finalized the death tolls were high including 19 children.. The explosion blew off the entire north wall and either destroyed or damaged buildings as far as three blocks away. McVeigh was “anti-government” and wanted revenge against the federal government for what had
She says “That day was in fact my brothers birthday and when I called him to wish him a happy birthday, that morning, and tell him what had happened he was still sleeping and had no idea of what was going on”. Turns out that McVeigh was already in jail, having been stopped a little more than an hour after the bombing for a traffic violation and then arrested for unlawfully carrying a handgun (history.com).Hanger the officer who stopped McVeigh brought brought him into jail for unlawfully carrying a weapon, but it wasn't until two days later that McVeigh was identified as the bombing suspect.(NBC) When she was told this information she says “i knew it was just a matter of time before they charged/found the scumbag who did this. This wasn't fair to anyone, especially for no reason”. McVeigh was the main man on the case, he was the one who wanted all of this: while Nichols was looked at as a side kick. She said “I don't understand how someone can be for our country and fight for us then turn and fight against us, he deserved the punishment he got. No one deserved that especially those helpless people who lost their lives”. That was the opinion of a lot of people certainly the parents who lost their children. She says “ How as a mother or father would you move on from such a tragedy? How do you cope with something so severe”? Baylee's mom was interviewed on the 20th year anniversary of
-A giant explosion in Oklahoma City in 1995, killed 168 lives, was a retribution for a
At 9:02 a.m. on April 19, 1995, a 5,000-pound bomb, hidden inside a Ryder truck, exploded just outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. The explosion caused massive damage to the building and killed 168 people, 19 of whom were children (Rosenburg, 2011). On April 23, four days after the bombing, President Bill Clinton addressed the public and gave an effective, excellent speech.
McVeigh's trial was set for Denver, Colorado on March 31, 1997. On June 3rd 1997, the jury found McVeigh guilty of all 11 counts, including eight counts of first degree murder in the deaths of eight federal law-enforcement agents, conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction, using a weapon of mass destruction, and destruction of a federal building. The jury deliberated for 23 and a half hours before rendering the verdict. In the end, McVeigh was left all alone as dozens of former best friends and family relatives testified against him (Eddy et al., 1997).
On April 19th, 1995 a homemade bomb made of a concoction of agricultural fertilizer, fuel, and other dangerous chemicals was left in a truck parked outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City. At 9:02 in the morning, it’s blast damaged over 300 buildings surrounding the vehicle and even flattened a third of the federal building. (Strom, 2015) The bomb took the lives of 168 people, including 19 children. It was found that two men, Timothy McVeigh and Terry Lynn Nichols were the ones who planted the device. Both men were found to be associated with a radical militia movement that sought revenge for a siege in Waco, Texas two years prior. The siege killed 82 Branch Davidians, of whom, multiple were related to the militia movement.
It was April 19, 1995 at 9:03 that the lives of thousands were affected by one single