The Management of Armed Occupations
The occupation by armed individuals of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon drew the attention of people from across the globe. While the public and the media may have been intrigued with the drama of the stand-off, law enforcement professionals closely watched as the events unfolded in an effort to glean effective tactics and strategies. There is much to be learned from the experiences of others.
Police practitioners hoped to learn successful methods from Oregon should a similar incident happen in their jurisdiction. An official debriefing of what went right and what could have gone better during the situation will undoubtedly be reported in the future by those who were directly involved. In the meantime, those on the outside can share their perspectives and impressions of effective ways to deal with armed occupations from what they observed.
Some have called the Malheur standoff “Occupation Lite.” For most of the incident, law enforcement took a laissez-faire approach as occupiers were at liberty to come and go as they pleased. After 40 days, the siege was ended with an unfortunate loss of life. However, the rest of the occupiers were arrested, the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge was vacated, and the people of Harney County, Oregon returned to their normal lives. As an added bonus, Cliven Bundy — a Nevada rancher who led his own confrontation against federal law enforcement officers in 2014 — was captured and taken into custody without incident.
The finesse and patience with which the Malheur stand-off was managed by local and federal law enforcers was in stark contrast to the way the sieges in Waco, Texas and Ruby Ridge, Idaho were handled. At Malheur, law enforcement demonstrated that they had learned about what to do and what not to do from those calamitous occurrences from the past. Here is a list of strategies to be considered by law enforcement should an armed occupation happen in their jurisdiction.
o Contain, contain, contain — Attempt to prevent the situation from growing into a larger problem.
o Slow things down — If safe to do so, use time to your advantage. There is no need to rush in if no lives are in immediate jeopardy.
o Establish a dialog — Conduct frequent communications with the occupiers to work towards a peaceful end to the occupation.
o Take action in a planned and calculated way — Consult resources such as those who have experienced similar situations in the past. Include contingencies in your plans. Try to anticipate the occupiers’ moves and objectives.
o Plan for the arrival of supporters — Supporters of the occupiers will come, especially in today’s connected society. Decide how they will be handled before they arrive.
o Plan for the influx of media — Assign a competent team of Public Information Officers to work with the media. Consider establishing a JIC (Joint Information Center) if the incident becomes prolonged or draws the attention of the national and international press. Provide timely updates to governmental officials and the media to ensure accurate accounts of activities being taken by law enforcement.
o Establish joint command of all law enforcement agencies — A Unified Command structure within the Incident Command System is imperative to ensure all agencies are working with a unified purpose and objectives.
o Prevent the creation of martyrs — Support for the occupiers will increase and be intensified if the public perceives that the occupiers are being mistreated or mishandled by law enforcement. Strategize and proceed carefully so as not to embolden the occupiers’ cause.
o Be vigilant to look for pre-operational indicators exhibited by the occupiers — The occupiers might suddenly change tactics and become violent. Watch for any indicators that their mood is changing, or that they are preparing for a different tactic.
Is the “Occupation Lite” approach a viable strategy for armed occupations? It appears to have worked fairly well in Oregon. Hopefully law enforcement officers everywhere were watching and taking note of the successful strategies and tactics employed there. Learning from the experience of others is important for improving in the future. As philosopher George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
