Sentencing Set In Machine Gun Case

Militia Leader Faces Up To 20 Years In Federal Prison

Last updated Monday, April 9, 2007 7:39 PM CDT in News

By Ron Wood
The Morning News

    FAYETTEVILLE -- A sentencing date has been set for a Washington County militia leader convicted in federal court of having three illegal machine guns.

    Hollis Wayne Fincher, 60, was convicted Jan. 12 of possessing illegal, unregistered weapons, including machine guns and a sawed-off shotgun.

    Sentencing is set for 10 a.m. June 22 in U.S. District Court in Fayetteville before Judge Jimm Larry Hendren.

    Fincher faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

    In March, Fincher essentially fired his attorney, Oscar Stilley, and was appointed an attorney by the court, Shannon Lea Blatt.

    Fincher had two .308-caliber machine guns, homemade versions of the Browning model 1919. The other firearms were 9 mm STEN design submachine guns and a shotgun.

    Fincher never denied he had the guns.

    The defense tried to make a case of the Constitution versus gun laws; the government kept the case more simple, arguing Fincher had the machine guns and they weren't registered as required by federal law.

    After the trial, Hendren refused to throw the conviction out after Fincher challenged the court's jurisdiction and the Grand Jury indictment against him.

    Hendren said his court has jurisdiction to hear any case arising from federal law within the Western District of Arkansas. Hendren said the indictment was legally sufficient because it contained all of the essential elements of the offense charged, in this case that Fincher knowingly possessed a machine gun.

    Hendren said the government was not required to put on evidence of any connection with interstate commerce in the case.

    Fincher didn't testify before the jury. The judge ruled after hearing testimony, with the jury out of the room, that Fincher's proposed testimony was inadmissible because it was aimed at challenging the legality of federal gun laws, not whether Fincher had illegal, unregistered firearms in his possession.

    Reader Comments (6 comment(s))


    The following comments are provided by readers and are the sole responsibility of their authors. The Morning News does not review comments before their publication, nor do we guarantee their accuracy. By publishing a comment here you agree to abide by our comment policy. If you see a comment that violates our policy, please notify the web editor.

    Why we should Abolish the federal goverment not reformed wrote on Apr 10, 2007 6:43 AM:

    " If you read the "rule book," which is the United States Constitution, you will find that many provisions are being totally ignored and in many cases are so blatantly obvious that anyone with an elementary school education can see it. No where does the Constitution allow the creation of a central bank so that fiat paper money can be issued. No where does the Constitution allow the use of anything other than gold and silver coin for currency. No where does the Constitution allow for the creation of a national police force, I.E. FBI, ATF, DEA, etc. No where does the Constitution allow for the President to declare war and decide who or what nation to invade. No where does the Constitution allow for the federal government to be involved in "education." No where does the Constitution allow for any license to have or possess any certain type of firearm. No where does the Constitution allow for the government to do background checks on firearms purchases. No where does the Constitution allow for a national forest service. No where does the Constitution allow for the federal government to claim ownership of any land except as specified for forts, post offices, or naval yards. No where does the Constitution allow for the DIRECT taxation of wages. And this has been supported by numerous Supreme Court decisions. "

    Koresh, 53 adults (including two pregnant women) and 21 children died in the fire. wrote on Apr 10, 2007 7:00 AM:

    " From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search David Koresh Born: August 17, 1959 Houston, Texas, USA Died: April 19, 1993 Waco, Texas, USA Occupation: Leader, Branch Davidians millennial cult David Koresh (born Vernon Wayne Howell) (August 17, 1959 – April 19, 1993) was the leader of the Branch Davidians religious sect, believing himself to be the final prophet, until a 1993 raid by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and subsequent siege by the Federal Bureau of Investigation ended with the burning of the Branch Davidian ranch. Koresh, 53 adults (including two pregnant women) and 21 children died in the fire. "

    Why the government wants you disarmed wrote on Apr 10, 2007 5:23 PM:

    " "In total, during the first eighty-eight years of this century, almost 170 million men, women, and children have been shot, beaten, tortured, knifed, burned, starved, frozen, crushed, or worked to death; buried alive, drowned, hung, bombed, or killed in any other of the myriad ways governments have inflicted death on unarmed, helpless citizens and foreigners. The dead could conceivably be nearly 360 million people. It is as though our species has been devastated by a modern Black Plague. And indeed it has, but a plague of Power, not germs." "

    Why the government wants you disarmed wrote on Apr 10, 2007 5:28 PM:

    " All that, in addition to millions of war dead in the 20th Century. Rummel has recently updated his estimate for total government murder during the 20th Century to 262 million. That averages to roughly 7,178 murders per day, every day, for one hundred years. And for every murder, a stunned and grief-stricken family; a shattered life for sons or daughters; a traumatized group of friends and neighbors. For every murder, many more who were “only” maimed or crippled or imprisoned or tortured or gang-raped (by guards or soldiers or inmates) or otherwise harmed, but not actually killed. If 262 million were murdered, and many tens of millions more killed in war, how many more were “only” assaulted in some way or other? A billion? Two billion? How much emotional damage, to those victims and to others who knew and cared about them, was done in just the past century? "

    He got it from Abe wrote on Apr 10, 2007 6:52 PM:

    " Jimm must of received his jurisdiction from dictator abe lincoln the law of the jungle and might makes right type jurisdiction. "

    And The Survey Says wrote on Apr 11, 2007 12:58 AM:

    " If You Can't Do The Time....Don't Do The Crime...... "


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