1993 — Feb 28, Shootout, Large ATF force attempts to serve David Koresh, Waco, TX[1]– 10

–10  CBS News. “What Really Happened at Waco: Six Years Latter Controversy….” 1-25-2000.

–10  NYT Learning Network. “Feb. 28, 1993. Federal Agents Rain Religious Sect…” 2-28-2012.

–10  Smith. “Scholars tackle ‘cult’ questions 20 years after…tragedy.” Wacotrib.com, 4-13-2013

 

Narrative Information

 

CBS News: “….It all started nearly seven years ago with a February 1993 raid by more than 70 agents from the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms. David Koresh and his followers, the Branch Davidians, were known to have a large cache of high-powered weapons. The ATF also suspected that the group had explosives and the parts to manufacture machine guns illegally. When it arrived to search the compound, shooting started almost immediately. Afterward, four ATF agents and six Branch Davidians were dead. The Federal Bureau of Investigation moved in, and a lengthy standoff ensued. For more than seven frustrating weeks, the FBI tried to persuade the Davidians to come out….” (CBS News. “What Really Happened at Waco: Six Years Latter Controversy….” 1-25-2000.)

 

NYT Learning Network: “On Feb. 28, 1993, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agents raided the compound of the Branch Davidian religious sect in Waco, Tex., to arrest its leaders, including the self-proclaimed Messiah, David Koresh, on weapons charges. The Davidians resisted, and a gun battle erupted that left four agents and six Davidians dead.

 

“The New York Times noted that the raid came just a day after The Waco Tribune-Herald published an exposé on the sect that “called attention to the weapons and discussed accusations by former members that Mr. Koresh sexually abused girls in the compound” and an editorial that ‘criticized what it called a lack of government action against the group.’

 

“The raid was hastily planned and had several serious flaws. Koresh was tipped to the raid hours before it occurred; he told an undercover agent living with the sect that he knew, yet the bureau still decided to proceed with the raid. The Times quoted the bureau official Ted Royster: ‘They knew we were coming. I cannot tell you what went wrong. It appeared as though they were waiting for us.’….” (NYT Learning Network. “Feb. 28, 1993. Federal Agents Rain Religious Sect…” 2-28-2012.) [See April 19, 1993 for entry on raid that ended ensuing siege that led to deaths of more than 75 people.]

 

PBS: “At about 9:30 a.m. agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms attempt to execute arrest and search warrants against David KORESH and the Branch Davidian compound. Gunfire erupts. Four ATF agents are killed and 16 are wounded. An undetermined number of Davidians are killed and injured. Within a few hours, the FBI becomes the lead agency for resolving the standoff….

 

“Michael SCHROEDER, a Branch Davidian, is killed while he tries to return to the main building….” (PBS. Frontline. Waco: The Inside Story. “Chronology of the Siege.” 1995.)

 

Sources

 

CBS News. “What Really Happened at Waco: Six Years Latter Controversy Continues.” 1-25-2000. Accessed 4-3-2016 at: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/what-really-happened-at-waco/

 

New York Times, The Learning Network. “Feb. 28, 1993. Federal Agents Rain Religious Sect in Waco.” 2-28-2012. Accessed 4-3-2016 at: http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/28/feb-28-1993-federal-agents-raid-religious-sect-in-waco/?_r=0

 

PBS. Frontline. Waco: The Inside Story. “Chronology of the Siege.” 1995. Accessed 4-3-2016 at: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/waco/timeline.html

 

Smith, J. B. “Scholars tackle ‘cult’ questions 20 years after Branch Davidian tragedy.” Wacotrib.com, 4-13-2013. Accessed 4-3-2016 at: http://www.wacotrib.com/news/religion/scholars-tackle-cult-questions-years-after-branch-davidian-tragedy/article_a3fa463e-d1b4-5eda-b49e-95327bc276d7.html?mode=story

 

 

[1] See April 19, 1993 for FBI/ATF attack, wherein 75 Davidians (including 25 children) died.