Defense lawyers call the alleged scheme "cockamamie,'' claiming the
defendants stand accused of a crime they never could have committed.
Trial was scheduled to begin today for Johnie Wise, 72, Jack Abbott
Grebe Jr., 43, and Oliver Dean Emigh, 63. The men, all members of the
Republic of Texas separatist group, face charges of conspiracy to use
weapons of mass destruction. They could face life in prison if convicted.
Their scheme, investigators say, was to modify a Bic lighter to propel
air instead of propane; coat a cactus needle with a biological agent like
rabies, anthrax or botulism; insert the needle into the lighter; then
shoot the needle at an unsuspecting victim.
The men, who were arrested in July, allegedly sent threatening e-mail to
top government officials, including Clinton, Attorney General Janet Reno,
FBI Director Louis Freeh, and Texas Attorney General Dan Morales.
The message to Freeh read: "Your FBI employees and their families have
been targeted for destruction by revenge.''
Court-appointed attorneys for the accused have denied the charges. At a
July hearing, Grebe's attorney, Dan Herink, called the scheme
"fanciful'' and "cockamamie.''
Defense lawyers also have sought to shift blame to the government's star
witness who, according to court documents, agreed to tape conversations
with the three men as plans unfolded.
© Copyright 1998 The Associated Press
I hope you enjoyed the news! I am through now and will relax with my toast and marmalade, weapons I keep for self-defense, a right held inviolate by the federal constitution and a right excepted from the Texas STATE government! TOO BAD MORALES!
L. Savage
